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US Navy pushes back USS Guardian salvage ops due to rough seas

 News
Feb 102013
 
US Navy pushes back USS Guardian salvage ops due to rough seas

Poor sea conditions forced the US Navy on Sunday to push back the operation to dismantle USS Guardian, a minesweeper ship, to pull it out from the Tubbataha Reef where it has been grounded since Jan. 17. The US Navy team would continue the salvage operation when the bigger crane ship Jackson 25 arrives, said Coast Guard Palawan District chief Commodore Enrico Efren Evangelista. Earlier reports said the first crane ship Smit Borneo from Singapore encountered anchoring problems last Saturday, causing a delay in the start of the salvage operation. “Smit Borneo is there but could not anchor due to weather. Its anchoring should be precise. It tried (to anchor) but so far, out of the four anchors, only one had a good bite at seabed,” said Evangelista. After the Tubbataha Protected Area Management Board approved the salvage plan crafted by the US Navy, Coast Guard commandant Rear Adm. Rodolfo Isorena announced on Wednesday the dismantling of the USS Guardian may start Sunday or Monday. However, the operation hit a snag due to anchoring problem. Citing information from US Navy officials, Evangelista said Jascon 25 departed Singapore around 4 p.m. Saturday and is due to sail directly to Tubbataha Reef. He said the bigger crane ship is expected to arrive around 9 p.m. Friday. The USS Guardian ran aground on Tubbataha Reef last Jan. 17, after a port call at Subic Bay, a former base of the US Navy. Latest estimate showed that the grounding of the ship has damaged 4,000 Read More …

Palace: 2 offices reviewing NBI findings on Atimonan incident

 News
Feb 102013
 
Palace: 2 offices reviewing NBI findings on Atimonan incident

At least two offices in Malacañang are now reviewing the findings of the National Bureau of Investigation on the shooting incident that killed 13 people in Atimonan, Quezon last Jan. 6. Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said President Benigno Aquino III wants the review to be more thorough than speedy. “Gusto ng pangulo, thorough at exhaustive ang pagtingin kesa i-sacrifice natin ang quality for speed,” she said on government-run dzRB radio. The findings are now in the offices of Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. and chief presidential legal counsel Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa, she said. In the meantime, she appealed to the public for patience while the two offices conduct their study. “I’m sure our officials are getting on with that study,” she said. Aquino earlier tasked the NBI to probe the incident, which police initially said was a shootout between them and members of a criminal gang engaged in gun-for-hire activities. But an investigation was triggered after it was found that some of the fatalities had included an environmentalist. Justice Secretary Leila de Lima had also said earlier that the evidence gathered so far indicated what happened was not a shootout. — LBG, GMA News

DOJ counsel heading to Malaysia for Amalilio extradition

 News
Feb 092013
 
DOJ counsel heading to Malaysia for Amalilio extradition

(Updated 5:14 p.m.) Philippine government lawyers are heading to Malaysia to start formal efforts for the extradition of Manuel Amalilio, the alleged brains behind a P12-billion investment scam, Malacañang said Sunday. “Kahit wala tayong extradition treaty with Malaysia, Malaysian law allows extradition under certain [circumstances],” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said on government-run dzRB radio. In a separate interview on Sunday, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima denied reports that Malaysia had turned down the Philippines’ request for Amalilio’s extradition. “It was in fact among the outcomes of the February 6 talks with our counterpart, the Attorney General, that the Philippines can commence the extradition process immediately,” she said. Amalilio’s extradition does not answer the question of his citizenship, de Lima added. “We made a formal request for such freezing of Amalilio’s assets, such as company shares, stocks, land assets, etc., under the ASEAN Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty… and in such a process, we understand that Amalilio’s citizenship is not an issue, and both sides can cooperate,” she said. Amalilio was arrested in Malaysia last January for possession of a fake passport. He pleaded guilty to violating Malaysian passport laws and was sentenced to two years’ jail there. Last weekend, Malaysian authorities said they have ordered Amalilio’s assets frozen. On the other hand, two members of Malaysia’s Parliament visited the Philippines last weekend to gather facts about Amalilio. They also hinted the loot from his scam may be used to finance the campaigns of some politicians running in Malaysia’s coming elections. Read More …

Comelec to release ad urging public to report campaign violations

 News
Feb 082013
 
Comelec to release ad urging public to report campaign violations

The Commission on Elections is set to release an advertisement urging the people to report campaign violations or file complaint against candidates. “Meron ako[ng] [i]lalabas na ads. Ang sasabihin ko, isumbong mo sa Comelec. Hindi kanino man, isumbong mo sa Comelec,” poll chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. said Friday. “Mag-uumpisa na ang campaign sa February 12, meron ng mga violation sa campaign. Kung meron kayong makita, isumbong nyo sa Comelec at kami ang bahala sa kanila,” he added. Further, Brillantes said the public can report violations by calling the Comelec and the poll body will check if the complaint has basis. “Kung gusto mong magpresent ng evidence, sa hearing na. Magsumbong ka lang, pwede mong itawag, kami na ang bahala. Ite-check namin kung may basis, aaksyunan namin. Ibig sabihin, pag may sumbong, titingnan namin, ipapa-check natin sa election officer,” he said. In a separate interview, Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said the public can tweet the picture of the supposed violation to the poll body. He said the complainant needs to give his name, contact number, location and other details of the violation. He said these information are needed so they will be able to get in touch with the person but it will be kept confidential unless the complainant himself files the case. “The whole idea here is to get the public to report these violations. Basically, this is social media versus guns, goons and gold. That’s the philosophy we are working on,” said Jimenez. — Amita Legaspi/RSJ, GMA News

New LPA tracked off GenSan as Amihan returns

 News
Feb 082013
 
New LPA tracked off GenSan as Amihan returns

Satellite image at 7 a.m., 8 Feb 2013. Satellite image at 7 a.m., 8 Feb 2013 Weather Central State weather forecasters on Friday afternoon started tracking a potential cyclone —a low-pressure area— off Mindanao, even as the northeast monsoon is starting to make itself felt again. PAGASA, in its 5 p.m. bulletin, said the LPA was estimated at 500 km east of General Santos City, even as the northeast monsoon is affecting Extreme Northen Luzon. However, PAGASA did not immediately say if the LPA has a strong chance of intensifying into a cyclone. If it becomes a cyclone, it will be codenamed Crising. Earlier, PAGASA had said there may be “zero to one” cyclone that may enter the Philippine area of responsibility in February. Rain over parts of PHL For the next 24 hours, PAGASA said Batanes and Calayan islands will experience cloudy skies with light rain. “Mindanao will have cloudy skies with light to moderate rain showers and thunderstorms,” it added. The rest of the country will be partly cloudy with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms particularly over Bicol and Eastern Visayas. Also, PAGASA said moderate to strong winds blowing from the northeast will prevail over Luzon, Eastern Visayas and Eastern Mindanao and the coastal waters along these areas will be moderate to rough. Elsewhere, winds will be light to moderate coming from the northeast with slight to moderate seas. — TJD, GMA News

DOLE: Less popular jobs among best paying

 News
Feb 082013
 
DOLE: Less popular jobs among best paying

With graduation nearing, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Friday disclosed the highest-paying occupations in the last five years—and many of them are not as popular and as fashionable as, say, being a nurse or an engineer. DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said some of these jobs may be “less popular and less considered but pay the highest salaries.” “I also advise them to refrain from choosing courses based on what’s in vogue or fashionable, or, to use the popular social lingo of the youth, what’s ‘trending’ and popular. Just because a neighbor’s son or daughter will take up this or that course does not mean you should follow suit,” she said. Citing the latest study of the Bureau of Local Employment (BLE), Baldoz said the high-paying jobs in the Philippines include aviation, banking and finance, business process outsourcing, creative industries, cyber services, manufacturing, and mining. 10 highest paying jobs “An art director, for example, which is under creative industries, can receive a corresponding median salary of P69,286 a month, while a geologist’s salary is P64,889 a month on the average,” she said. The DOLE also said an aircraft pilot, a navigator, and a flight engineer could receive as high as P57,789 a month salary; mining engineer and metallurgical engineer, P55,638 a month; and a computer programmer, P43,573 per month. Rounding up the top 10 high-paying positions are: systems analyst and systems designer, P42,112 a month production supervisor and general foreman, P36,133 a month actuarian, with P35,480 a month Read More …

GMA Network asks SC to stop airtime limits on pol ads

 News
Feb 082013
 
GMA Network asks SC to stop airtime limits on pol ads

(Updated 5:44 p.m.) Broadcast giant GMA Network Corp. on Friday asked the Supreme Court to stop and declare as illegal two Commission on Elections (Comelec) resolutions limiting political advertisements in television and radio. In a 56-page petition for certiorari, the network said Comelec Resolution 9615 issued in January and Resolution 9631 in February imposing limits on the total number of minutes for a national or local candidate’s broadcast campaign were “too restrictive.” “We raised that the aggregate airtime for political advertisements is restrictive considering that it inpinges on the right to suffarge and the right of the people to be informed on important matters and the right of the people to free speech and expression,” said one of the network’s lawyers, Maria Estelita Arles. Under the January Comelec ruling, which was upheld by the February resolution, the following guidelines were set: For all national candidates, 120 minutes in all TV networks and 180 minutes in all radio stations For all local candidates, 60 minutes in all TV networks and 90 minutes in all radio stations. GMA Network also asked the high court to issue a temporary restraining order or a writ of preliminary injunction against the Comelec ruling. It also said the Comelec ruling should be declared unconstitutional and unlawful for having been promulgated in excess or without jurisdiction. “Section 9(a) of the new rulesis a cruel and oppressive regulation as it imposes the unreasonable and nearly impossible burden on the broadcast mass media of monitoring a candidate’s or political Read More …

On his birthday, PNoy visits boy with cancer

 News
Feb 082013
 
On his birthday, PNoy visits boy with cancer

On his birthday, President Benigno Aquino III on Friday took time off from his official schedule to fulfill the wish of a 15-year-old cancer patient who seemed to have given up hope in getting well. Jericho Navarro Rafols, has been suffering from bone cancer since he was 13. Doctors attending him had to amputate his right leg to stop the spread of the disease. “The boy had given up, but the President’s Friday morning lifted the boy’s spirits,” said a palace staffer. “Sa una ayaw na magpagamot at lumaban, pero nung sinabi ni PNoy [na] i-tuloy ang laban, doon siya nagkaroon [uli] ng lakas na lumaban…,” the Palace staff added. Communications Secretary Ricky Carandang confirmed the President’s visit to the boy. “The President visited Jericho Rafols, a bone cancer patient at the Philippine Orthopedic Center. It was [his] wish to meet the President,” Carandang told reporters at a briefing. “The President took time off from his schedule. He had a meeting with the PMS (Presidential Management Staff), [but] he took time off from his schedule to personally greet the boy,” he added. While at the Philippine Orthopedic Center, Aquino also visited another patient who has been confined for over 15 years. Mario Maniego was on his way home from work in 1998 when he slipped on a gutter and fell, hitting his spinal chord. Both Rafols and Maniego are confined in the charity ward of the hospital. First birthday greeting Members of the Presidential Security Group had the pleasure of Read More …

Respondent in Aman Futures case wants to be state witness

 News
Feb 072013
 
Respondent in Aman Futures case wants to be state witness

A respondent in the syndicated estafa cases filed against officials of the Aman Futures Group Philippines on Thursday asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to be formally admitted as state witness in the case. Donna Coyme told a DOJ preliminary investigation that she is ready to divulge whatever she knows about the company and its founder, Manuel Amalilio. During the proceedings, Coyme denied being an officer of the Aman Futures Group. “Investor lang po ako dun. Napagkamalan lang po ako na officer kasi araw-araw po ako nandun sa mga Luna, dahil tutor ako ng mga anak nila,” she told the DOJ panel, referring to company president Fernando Luna and his wife Nimfa. “I have an idea of what was going on because I was in their (Lunas’) house every day,” she added when asked on what her possible testimony will be about. She also said she never saw Pagadian Mayor Samuel Co, another respondent in the case, in the Aman Futures office. Coyme said the company used the Lunas’ house as its headquarters. Her statement ran contrary to Mr. Luna’s claim that he was just Amalilio’s driver who was asked to stand as company president. Amalilio is currently serving a two-year sentence in Malaysia after he was caught in possession of a fraudulent passport and ID. He went to Malaysia after news broke out of his firm’s alleged illegal activity. Aman Futures is accused of defrauding thousands of investors through a so-called “Ponzi Scheme,” in which the firm misrepresents itself Read More …

PNoy warns vs. 'fake' admin allies, takes swipe at Revilla

 News
Feb 072013
 
PNoy warns vs. 'fake' admin allies, takes swipe at Revilla

President Benigno Aquino III used a Liberal Party event in Cavite province on Thursday to take a swipe at politicians who he said are just pretending to be allies of the administration, a report on “24 Oras” said. “Paalala lamang po, asahan na po ninyong may mga nagpapanggap at may mga nakikisakay diumano sa ating krusada,” he said in his speech without giving names. “Matuto po tayong kumilatis ng mga susunod na lider ng bansa upang matiyak na aarangkada tayo sa katuparan n gating mga pangarap at hindi na kailanman lumihis pa,” he added. At one point, the president even said the electorate should not take their chances on “agimat” or “anting-anting (amulets)” — a statement that could be construed as referring to Sen. Ramon Bong Revilla Jr. and his family. “Huwag po tayong umasa sa tsamba o sa agimat o anting-anting,” Aquino said. Aquino gave the speech days after the opposition party Lakas-CMD said it is eyeing Revilla, an actor known in some of his popular movies as “Agimat,” as its standard bearer in the 2016 presidential election. Cavite is a known bailiwick of the Revilla political clan. Revilla’s father, Ramon Revilla Sr., is a former actor and senator popularly known for his movies about amulets. His wife, Lani Mercado, is the incumbent congresswoman of Cavite’s second district while his son, Jolo Revilla, is running for vice governor in the May elections. The “24 Oras” report by Theresa Andrada said Sen. Revilla did not directly comment on Aquino’s statement Read More …

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