Maniolas

Senator Grace Poe has filed a resolution urging the Philippine National Police to operate “an improved 24/7 dedicated direct national emergency hotline similar to the successful 911 system in the US to address crime situations and provide assistance for citizens’ predicaments and other peace and order issues.” In her resolution, Poe, the chair of the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, said recent increases in crime volume indicated the need for the hotline in addressing crimes across the country. “We’re supposedly one of the best BPO countries in the world, with the most reliable call center agents, can’t we have a national 911 system? Wherever you are in the Philippines, you can call and they can determine your location and they can send somebody. This is an investment,” she said. She said current Hotline 117 did not work in all places. Poe cited the report of the PNP Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management that there was an increase in total crime volume in the first five months of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013 or from 245,347 last year to 289,198 this year.” She said the PNP’s crime statistics showed that there was also a noticeable spike in crime volume between 2008 and 2009, and again between 2012 and 2013. In the last case, the crime volume in 2013 was reported at 631,406, around triple the volume in the year before, at 217,812. More than 1/4 of crimes reported between January and May 2014 happened Read More …

Detained Senator Jinggoy Estrada on Monday admitted that he thinks Vice President Jejomar Binay’s rating could dip, given the ongoing Senate investigation into the allegedly overpriced Makati City Hall Building II. “Maaapektuhan bahagya [ang ratings niya] pero alam naman ng mga tao na political persecution yun,” Estrada said during an interview after his bail hearing. Estrada is currently detained at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center on accusations that he pocketed millions in government funds by diverting his pork barrel allocations to alleged pork-scam operator Janet Lim-Napoles. He has repeatedly denied the accusation. Estrada also linked his arrest over the pork barrel scam to political persecution. “Parang kami, three senators were jailed, they already achieved their purpose, wala nang sumunod, eh. Itong si Secretary De Lima, laging sinasabi na may susunod na batch, pero until now, she’s silent on that. Ngayon pinupunterya naman nila si Vice President. Inuubos talaga nila ang members of the opposition,” Estrada said. A plunder and graft complaint had been filed against Binay and his son, incumbent Makati Mayor Junjun Binay, over the allegedly overpriced Makati City Hall Building II. The younger Binay was a city councilor in 2007. The Senate, meanwhile, is conducting its own inquiry into the allegedly overpriced 11-story Makati building. The building has a total floor area of 31,928 square meters and has five parking floors, five office floors and a basement. The investigation was launched after Renato Bondal, the younger Binay’s opponent in the 2013 mayoralty race, alleged that the building Read More …

Transport Secretary Joseph Emilio “Jun” Abaya on Monday bared the government projects meant to improve the service of the Metro Rail Transit after it experienced a number of alarming glitches, including a derailment that saw a train overshooting the Taft Avenue Station and injuring more than 30 passengers and commuters.   Most of the projects presented will be completed next year while the rest are scheduled to be finished in 2016. Aside from the P3.579 billion worth of 48 new trains, which will start arriving next year, Abaya said the DOTC was bidding out the P870 million Ancillary System to integrate the brand new coaches on the MRT system. The system upgrade will be on the MRT’s power stations, train parking, and Taft Avenue station track extension. Among the projects revealed to the media was the P1.088-billion automatic fare collection system, the contract for which was inked last March. The program, tasked to unify the ticketing system of the three mass rail transport system in Metro Manila, will be completed next year. Abaya said that the train overhaul of the MRT would start in the last quarter of this year. The project, worth P1.155 billion, will involve the repair of 28 light rail vehicles.   He said that the train overhaul in 2006 was not completed as required.  Abaya said that facilities in stations will also be upgraded starting October.  This, he said, included the replacement of elevators and escalators. To avoid a lengthy disruption of operation due to communication problems, the Read More …

The House of Representatives will create an ad hoc committee that will review and evaluate the draft of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), which Malacañang is expected to submit to Congress on Wednesday. House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II on Monday morning filed House Resolution 1462 creating an ad hoc panel to review, evaluate and propose legislation related to the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB). It was later adopted by the House in plenary session. The ad hoc committee, which will be composed of 75 members, will have six months to finish its work. It is expected to study and conduct deliberations on all measures pertaining to the BBL. The election of the officials and members of the panel will take place after President Benigno Aquino III submits the final version of the draft BBL on Wednesday, Belmonte told reporters. Gonzales earlier said Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez was among the lawmakers being eyed to head the ad hoc committee on the BBL. The BBL will formalize the creation of the Bangsamoro political entity that will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). Aside from deliberating on the draft BBL, the ad hoc House panel will also be mandated to pursue dialogues and consultations with sectors and constituencies that will be affected by the proposed measure.   It is also expected to establish appropriate systems and procedures to ensure that constituencies, sectors and groups are given sufficient opportunities to be heard, and Read More …

Buhay Rep. Lito Atienza on Monday asked the Senate to stop its investigation on the alleged overpriced construction of Makati City Hall building II and let the Ombudsman and Commission on Audit do their job.  “The issue is best handled by a formal investigation. Merong Ombudsman, COA. We should allow these agencies do their job para hindi mahaluan ng pulitika,” Atienza said in a news forum in Manila. He said it is about time that the government agencies work properly. He added that he understands why Vice President Jejomar Binay would refuse to face the Senate probe. “Why should he go to a forum where he will be pilloried, not investigated but prosecuted?” he said. The former Manila mayor said he thinks the investigation is just a waste of the Senate’s time. He added that Binay’s accusers will not accept whatever the Vice President will say because they already have a conclusion on the matter. Albay Governer Joey Salceda, on the other hand, said an impeachment complaint should instead be filed against Binay for the enlightenment of everybody. “Gusto ko rin ng disclosure dito. Dapat may mag-file ng impeachment against Binay para the people can decide ahead of the 2016 (polls),” he said. —KG, GMA News