GMA News Online / News / Nation

Remaining PAGASA staff competent, Malacañang exec assures public

 General
Jun 142013
 
Remaining PAGASA staff competent, Malacañang exec assures public

Despite the “brain drain” facing PAGASA as senior staff are rumored to be on the way out to head for greener pastures, a Malacañang spokesperson assured the public on Friday that in addition to hiring new forecasters, the government can vouch for the quality of the weather agency’s personnel. “Alam ko may mga bago nga po tayong forecasters na hinire and confident naman po tayo doon sa mga kakayahan ‘nung mga forecasters natin,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said at a briefing. Valte also took note of the skills of existing forecasters, adding that they have been constantly at the front lines during emergency situations. We have always said that our forecasters can stand up to the test at nakikita naman po natin ‘yan kapag nagkakaroon ng kalamidad, nagkakaroon po tayo ng unos, nandiyan naman po lagi ‘yung mga PAGASA forecaster natin. They bear the brunt of the stress whenever there is any calamity that we go through,” Valte said. Still, Valte said she understood the desire of seasoned forecasters to set their sights on greener pastures. “I think, as a general rule, people will always want a better life for their families, and you can’t just trace that to one factor which is why kung bakit daw po umaalis ‘yung mga forecasters natin,” Valte said. Greener pastures An earlier report on GMA Network’s 24 Oras cited salaries seven times as much as the government can provide as one of the reasons why even the head of PAGASA is on Read More …

DepEd reminds LGUs: coordinate with PAGASA on school suspensions

 News
Jun 132013
 
DepEd reminds LGUs: coordinate with PAGASA on school suspensions

DepEd suspends classes in some NCR schools due to floods. Students of Araullo High School wade in knee-deep flood along Taft Avenue in Manila after an hour of heavy downpour on Thursday, June 13. Some classes in elementary and high school levels have been suspended by the DepEd due to flooded Metro Manila streets. Danny Pata Following Thursday’s heavy rain and floods that stranded several students, the Department of Education on Friday reminded local government officials to coordinate more closely with state weather forecasters in suspending classes. DepEd assistant secretary Tonesito Umali said many students had complained of class suspension announcements coming late, radio dzBB’s Glen Juego reported. Umali said the late announcements resulted in them getting stranded in the streets and soaked in the rain and floods. He said local government units should monitor weather conditions and advisories from the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration more closely, and issue suspension orders accordingly. On Thursday, heavy rain from a thunderstorm lashed Metro Manila, flooding several areas including school zones. While local government units canceled afternoon and evening classes, many students had already been stranded by then. —KG, GMA News

PAGASA: LPA, monsoon may bring floods, landslides in west Luzon, Visayas

 News
Jun 132013
 
PAGASA: LPA, monsoon may bring floods, landslides in west Luzon, Visayas

Flash floods and landslides threaten parts of Luzon and Visayas Friday due to the southwest monsoon enhanced by a low-pressure area outside the Philippine area of responsibility, state weather forecasters said. PAGASA forecaster Joey Figuracion said Metro Manila, where many were stranded by floods and heavy rain Thursday, may still expect rain showers and thunderstorms for Friday. “Walang weather disturbance na nakaapekto sa ating bansa o Philippine area of responsibility. Pero may low-pressure area sa bahagi ng West Philippine Sea at nag-enhance ng southwest monsoon. Naapektuhan ng southwest monsoon ang kanlurang bahagi ng Luzon at Visayas,” Figuracion said in an interview on dzBB radio. He said the LPA outside the PAR was unlikely to intensify into a cyclone, and may head for China. Friday outlook For Friday, PAGASA said the southwest monsoon is still affecting Luzon and Western Visayas. “The provinces of Palawan, Mindoro, Cavite, Batangas, Zambales and Bataan will experience cloudy skies with moderate to occasionally heavy rain showers and thunderstorms which may trigger flash floods and landslides,” it said in its 5 a.m. bulletin. It added Metro Manila and the rest of the country will be “cloudy with light to moderate rain showers and thunderstorms.” PAGASA also said moderate to strong winds from the southwest to southeast will prevail over Luzon and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough. Light to moderate winds coming from the southwest to southeast will prevail over Visayas and coming from the northeast to northwest over Mindanao with slight Read More …

China's 'behavior' needs even larger PHL defense spending – NSC

 News
Jun 132013
 
China's 'behavior' needs even larger PHL defense spending - NSC

A ranking official of the National Security Council on Thursday detailed China’s “aggressive behavior” in the West Philippine Sea, as he called for additional defense spending to uphold the Philippines’ interests in the region. Retired Navy Rear Admiral Vicente Agdamag, now Deputy Director General of the NSC Secretariat, said China’s actions confirmed its “clear intention to consolidate its control” over the disputed areas in line with the Chinese government’s nine-dash line claim. “It started, actually, in March 2011 when a Chinese patrol ship challenged MV Veritas Voyager conducting a survey for Forum Energy, 85 nautical miles off Palawan,” he said, referring to an incident at the Reed Bank in the Spratly Islands. Defense and military officials said two Chinese ships harassed the Department of Energy-commissioned survey ship. The Chinese ships told the crew of the Filipino ship to cease their activities because that was part of Chinese territory. The Chinese vessels left when the AFP Western Command, based in Puerto Princesa City, promptly dispatched a Navy BN-2 Islander maritime patrol aircraft and an Air Force OV-10 light attack/reconnaissance aircraft. No armed confrontation was reported. Agdamag also cited how Chinese ships prevented a Philippine Navy vessel, the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, from arresting Chinese fishermen caught illegally fishing at the Scarborough Shoal, locally known as the Bajo de Masiloc, in April last year. The incident triggered a standoff between the China and Philippines, though China now is in virtual control of the shoal. The Philippine government withdrew its two ships from Read More …

The ‘air war’ for votes in May 2013: Without SC TRO, 9 Senate bets, Buhay liable for breaching TV ads airtime cap

 News
Jun 132013
 
The ‘air war’ for votes in May 2013: Without SC TRO, 9 Senate bets, Buhay liable for breaching TV ads airtime cap

NINE SENATORIAL candidates and one party-list group in the recently concluded elections would have breached the airtime limit for political ads on TV had it not been for a crucial order from the Supreme Court regarding a new rule being imposed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec). One of those nine candidates would have also surpassed the campaign-spending limit. Seven of the nine actually won in the May 13, 2013 midterm elections. Meanwhile, Buhay, the party-list group that eventually garnered the most number of votes among party-list groups, is poised to occupy three seats in the House of Representatives.  But that is now murky water under the bridge. Last April 16, less than a month before the elections, the Supreme Court issued a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) on the “aggregate time limit” rule imposed by Comelec. The TRO effectively reverted the counting of advertising minutes to the “per station” basis, just as it was in the May 2010 presidential polls.  More than the issue of counting airtime limits, however, the Supreme Court TRO made for a seemingly contradictory situation with the law on campaign expenditure limits. As well, the TRO has made the Comelec’s task of enforcing campaigning and campaign finance rules — and consequently holding violators to account – less straightforward and all the more difficult to manage. As a result, campaign spending in the 2013 polls may turn out not to be any different from the campaign-ad spending spree of 2010.  In the 2010 polls, the total indicative Read More …

Walang Pasok: UST cancels Friday classes

 News
Jun 132013
 
Walang Pasok: UST cancels Friday classes

DepEd suspends classes in some NCR schools due to floods. Students of Araullo High School wade in knee-deep flood along Taft Avenue in Manila after an hour of heavy downpour on Thursday, June 13. Some classes in elementary and high school levels have been suspended by the DepEd due to flooded Metro Manila streets. Danny Pata Classes Friday at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila are suspended, the university’s Office of the Secretary General said in an advisory, which the school’s official student publication tweeted late Thursday. Earlier, monsoon rain-induced flooding in and around UST’s campus prompted school authoririties to suspend classes Thursday afternoon. The monsoon flooding stranded some students and staff in the campus. The Varsitarian reported that school authorities provided “free food to stranded Thomasians.” The suspension directive covers office work and classes from high school to post-graduate levels, the Varsitarian reported the Office of the Secretary General as having advised the campus community. Fr. Winston F. Cabading, O.P. is the UST Secretary-General.  Meanwhie, classes about two street blocks away at the Far Eastern University in Morayta, Manila will resume Friday, according to an advisory sent out 10:56 p.m. via the university’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts.   — ELR, GMA News

DOTC: Bad weather over NCR forces flight cancellations, diversions

 News
Jun 132013
 
DOTC: Bad weather over NCR forces flight cancellations, diversions

Heavy rain that fell over Metro Manila Thursday afternoon forced the cancellation of at least two flights and the diversion of five Manila-bound flights, including one from the United States. The Department of Transportation and Communications said the affected flights belonged to flag carrier Philippine Airlines, PAL Express and Cebu Pacific. One international flight from the US was diverted to Clark in Pampanga due to heavy rain, the DOTC said on its Twitter account. It identified the affected international flight as PAL Flight PR-113 from Los Angeles to Manila. The DOTC, in a separate Twitter post, said the canceled flights included: – 5J-911: Manila to Caticlan– 5J-912: Caticlan to Manila Cebu Pacific flight 5J-995, from Manila to General Santos, was diverted to Davao due to bad weather, it added. The DOTC also said three flights were diverted to Clark “due to weather condition.” These included: – 2P-056: Caticlan to Manila (PAL Express)– 2P-966: Cagayan de Oro to Manila (PAL Express)– 5J-966: Davao to Manila (Cebu Pacific) NAIA said Cebu Pacific 5J-906 (Caticlan to Manila) was also diverted to Clark. Heavy rain from a thunderstorm had fallen over Metro Manila, rendering many roads impassable and forcing some schools to suspend classes for the afternoon and evening. Many roads were flooded, stranding employees, students and commuters. Traffic was also snarled in many parts of Metro Manila, radio dzBB reported. Meanwhile, the Philippine National Railways said its commuter services were not operational “due to floods in some areas.” — BM, GMA News

BI wants to take custody of Chinese pangolin poachers if they post bail

 News
Jun 132013
 
BI wants to take custody of Chinese pangolin poachers if they post bail

The 12 suspected Chinese poachers whose vessel ran aground on Tubbataha Reef in April should be placed in the custody of the Bureau of Immigration if the Palawan court handling the case allows them to post bail, a bureau official said Thursday.   According to BI spokesperson Ma. Antonette Mangrobang, the bureau has already informed the Palawan court in a letter dated June 6 that if the 12 individuals are released, they should be turned over to Immigration authorities.   “In the event the court release the 12 poachers on bail, the BI has grounds to keep them in detention because they are undocumented aliens and they did not pass through the Immigration inspection when they entered,” she said. Mangrobang added that the BI, which has already issued a deportation order against the 12, would hold them while the case is being resolved. “It is one thing that they have a deportation order and another if the deportation order would be implemented,” she said. The 12 have been charged with poaching, illegal possession of endangered wildlife and attempted bribery of park officials. The Philippine Coast Guard discovered hundreds of frozen pangolins, individually wrapped in plastic and hidden in sacks, in the cargo hold of the suspected poachers’ vessel as it sat grounded on the reef. Pangolins, or scaly anteaters, are a threatened species and are covered by the Wildlife Protection and Conservation Act of the Philippines. In China, the pangolin’s meat and scales are are believed to have medicinal properties: the scales Read More …

PAGASA: Potential cyclone threatens west Luzon, Visayas with floods, landslides

 News
Jun 122013
 
PAGASA: Potential cyclone threatens west Luzon, Visayas with floods, landslides

Flash floods and landslides threaten the western parts of Luzon and Visayas Thursday as a  low-pressure area, just outside the Philippine area of responsibility enhances the southwest monsoon, state weather forecasters said. PAGASA forecaster Gener Quitlong said their models show the LPA intensifying into a cyclone. However, it is not likely to enter the Philippine area of responsibility and may instead move toward Vietnam. “Nagpapalakas ito ng habagat,” Quitlong said in an interview on dzBB radio. But if the LPA intensifies into a cyclone and enters the Philippine Area of Responsibility, it will be codenamed Emong, he said. Thursday outlook For Thursday, PAGASA said the southwest monsoon is affecting the western sections of Luzon and Visayas. “Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Western Visayas and the provinces of Zambales and Bataan will experience cloudy skies with moderate to occasionally heavy rain showers and thunderstorms which may trigger flash floods and landslides,” it said in its 5 a.m. bulletin. It added Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao and the rest of Luzon and of Visayas will be cloudy with light to moderate rain showers and thunderstorms. The rest of Mindanao will have partly cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms, it added. Also, moderate to strong winds from the southwest to south will prevail over the western sections of Luzon and Visayas and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough. Light to moderate winds coming from the southeast to south will prevail over the rest of Luzon and Visayas and from the Read More …

Rainy Thursday in NCR, parts of Luzon and VisMin

 News
Jun 122013
 
Rainy Thursday in NCR, parts of Luzon and VisMin

Southwest monsoon to bring rain to western side of PHL. PAGASA satellite image shows the southwest monsoon affecting the western sections of Luzon and the Visayas PAGASA Residents of Metro Manila and several parts of the country may expect light to moderate rain Thursday due to the southwest monsoon, state weather forecasters said Wednesday afternoon. In its 5 p.m. bulletin, PAGASA said the southwest monsoon is affecting the western sections of Luzon and Visayas. “Metro Manila, Ilocos region, the provinces of Zambales and Bataan, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol region, Western Visayas, Zamboanga Peninsula and SOCCSKSARGEN will experience cloudy skies with light to moderate rain showers and thunderstorms,” it said. The rest of the country will be “partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms mostly in the afternoon or evening,” PAGASA added. In past weeks, residents of Metro Manila had experienced rain from thunderstorms. In some instances, the thunderstorms caused floods in some major thoroughfares. But it was not until Monday that PAGASA officially declared the start of the rainy season. Thursday outlook  For Thursday, PAGASA said Metro Manila may expect temperatures of 25 to 32 degrees Celsius, while Tuguegarao City may expect temperatures of 25 to 36 degrees Celsius. Angeles and Olongapo Cities may expect temperatures of 24 to 32 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, PAGASA said moderate to strong winds from the southwest to south will prevail over the western sections of Luzon and Visayas and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough. Light to Read More …

 Older Entries  Newer Entries