MANILA, March 31, 2013 (AFP) – The Philippines Sunday welcomed the removal of a US minesweeper that had been stuck on a protected coral reef for 10 weeks, but stressed that compensation must be paid for the environmental damage. Salvage crews contracted by the US Navy Saturday extracted the last remaining piece of the USS […]
(www.pechanga.com) The Triple Threat concert series featuring Piolo Pascual, Angeline Quinto and Pokwang will have the first leg of their 2013 U.S. tour in Temecula, California on March 23, 2013. It will be held at the world famous Pechanga Theater at the Pechanga Resort & Casino. “Triple Threat” is a popular term used in Filipino show business to refer to a celebrity who is talented in three industries, specifically movie, TV, and music. That being said, the show’s headliners are considered as three of the best Triple Threats in the Philippines. Manila-born Piolo Jose Nonato Pascual or Piolo is currently one of the biggest stars of Philippine cinema, TV and music/entertainment. He has received multiple acting awards and nominations from the Philippines’ award-giving bodies such as Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC), FAMAS, Star Awards, Golden Screen Awards, and Gawad Urian. He was recognized as “Mr. RP Movies,” which is based on box-office sales, by the Guillermo Mendoza Scholarship Foundation for the years 2003-2005. Of Filipino-German-American ethnicity, he is also one of the most sought-after models. Piolo is a main stay in “ASAP XV,” a noontime variety show on ABS-CBN, the mother company of The Filipino Channel (TFC). He was first introduced on TV in the youth-oriented TV show “That’s Entertainment” back in 1994. His first movie was with Kris Aquino in “Vizconde Massacre: God Help Us!” in 1993. He has been performing in concerts since 2001 and has traveled the world bringing the Filipino music to fans everywhere. For more Read More …
A big concert will be held with special guest KZ Tandigan on April 21 at the Grove of Anaheim! No other band can surpass the popularity of Side A, they have captured a wide audience breaking all barriers between market classes and any music genre. Starting out at hotel lounges in 1985, they have have been accepted in the mainstream and have all the hit records, sold out concerts and recognition to prove it. It has been more than a decade now since they started and still hottest act for the Filipinos and Filipino American audiences.. The secret of their success? Being true to themselves, their faith, their music and their fans. Meet the members of Side A…. Naldy Gonzalez: Side A was formed by Naldy Gonzalez back in 1985and the only original member left in the group. He is the band’s musical director and the keyboard player as well. Naldy is one of the songwriters and lead vocalistsof Side A responsible for hits like “Sana Naman” and “Just Wanna Make You Happy”. Joey Generoso : One of the hearthrobs of the band is lead vocalist Joey Generoso,most popularly known as Joey G. Started out singing in folkhouses, he joined several bands before finally settling down with Side A in 1989. Joey is the distinct voice that gives Side A its unique sound. Aside from being the lead vocalist, he also plays the rhythm guitar. Other members are Ned Esguerra for Bass Guitar, Vocals, Ned Esguerra for Bass Guitar and Vocals , Leevon Cailao Read More …
Jodi Sta Maria and Richard Yap receive awards for “Be Careful With My Heart” at the 9th USTv Students Choice Awards of University of Santo Tomas, Asia’s oldest existing university. The magic of Maya (Jodi Sta. Maria) and Sir Chief (Richard Yap) has struck the entire nation again as “Be Careful With My Heart” recently did not only dominate the ratings game but ruled the trending topics list of the popular microblogging site Twitter Based on the latest data from Kantar Media last Tuesday (March 12), ABS-CBN’s no.1 kilig-serye garnered 26.4% national TV ratings or 13 points higher than the 13.4% of its rival program in GMA “Eat Bulaga.” The hashtag #SerChiefandMayaNationalKissDay (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZd4vwxcL8w) became a trending topic nationwide for several hours. Netizens raved about Sir Chief’s surprise goodbye kiss to Maya that left the former nanny stunned. The kiss happened after the two attended the Junior-Senior Prom Night of Luke (Jerome Ponce) and Nikki (Janella Salvador). Meanwhile, the whole cast of “Be Careful With My Heart,” led by Jodi and Richard, recently received the loudest cheer from the audiences in both 11th Gawad Tanglaw and 9th USTv Students Choice Awards. The entire cast of the country’s no.1 daytime TV program attended both awards night to personally thank the student communities for the Best Ensemble Performance and Best TV series from Gawad Tanglaw and the Best Daily Local Soap Opera and Best Ensemble Performance awards given by USTv. Don’t miss “Be Careful With My Heart” only on TFC worldwide. For more on the show, visit TFC.tv. Read More …
By Edwin P. Sallan Eula Valdez at the story conference for ‘Cassandra: Warrior Angel’. Unlike other kids her age, Eula Valdez didn’t want to be a princess in a fairy tale. Believe it or not, her original fantasy was to be a ninja. It came as no surprise, therefore, that Eula collected the Marvel comic book “Elektra: Assasin” back in high school. Written by Frank Miller in 1986, the comic features the sword-wielding, ninja-trained female assassin who is both an enemy and a love interest to the superhero Daredevil. She would later be portrayed by Jennifer Garner in a feature film version. Right about the same time, Eula also started collecting medieval swords. So when TV5 offered her to star as Eula Caballero’s mysterious mother in “Cassandra: Warrior Angel” in an epic story that involves a war between angels and demons, the elder Eula knew that this was a project that was right up her alley. “Na-excite ako. I’m a physical type of person so I think I’m going to enjoy this. Gusto ko din kasing action. I don’t always get to be in fantaseryestaposdito, may superpowers pa ang character ko so I’m really looking forward to doing this,” the 44-year old actress told InterAksyon during the show’s story conference last week. Always the free-spirited type, Eula’s career has not been defined by conforming to trends, which also explains her longevity in the business. She chooses her vehicles well and for the most part, those choice have paid off well. Read More …
Public-Private Partnership. Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. presents the challenges and opportunities in infrastructure investments in the Philippines in a panel discussion on Monday, 11 March 2012, hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. (Philippine Embassy Photo by Lilibeth Almonte-Arbez) WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Philippines wants to enter into more partnerships with the private sector as Manila continues to invest in the development of key infrastructure to help sustain its economic growth. “The Philippine government remains committed to driving infrastructure development as it recognizes its importance to future rapid and sustainable economic growth,” Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. told a forum at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) here on Monday, 11 March 2013. In his presentation “Philippines: Opportunities and Challenges in Infrastructure Investment,” Ambassador Cuisia urged investors to take another look at the Philippines and take advantage of the country’s unprecedented growth that has made it the s0-called rising star of East Asia. Ambassador Cuisia said that under the Philippine Development Plan 2011-2016, the government of President Benigno S. Aquino III seeks to not only accelerate infrastructure development but also provide safe, efficient, reliable, cost-effective and sustainable infrastructure. With the 6.6 percent growth in GDP, which was the highest in Southeast Asia in 2012, Ambassador Cuisia said the Philippines can be expected to continue increasing infrastructure spending to as much as 5 percent of GDP by 2016. Last year, the Philippines allocated 2.6 percent of GDP for infrastructure spending from 1 percent in 2005. Read More …
POEA Building (photo courtesy of www.pinoy-ofw.com) Secretary of Labor and Employment Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz announced yesterday that the National Conciliation and Mediation Board and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) have forged a Memorandum of Agreement to provide conciliation-mediation services to overseas Filipino workers on employment-related concerns. “This is an important development as far as the Single-Entry Approach [SENA] reform agenda is concerned. The combined effort of the NCMB and the POEA will make sure that the problems faced by many of our OFWs will be attended to with dispatch,” Secretary Baldoz said. The SENA program is a reform measure meant to dejudicialize the labor dispute settlement system through the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanism using the 30-day mandatory conciliation-mediation of all labor cases lodged in the different offices and attached agencies of the DOLE. The MOA, which was signed at the recent 25th NCMB anniversary celebration, provides that the NCMB and POEA shall support one another in implementing the SENA program specifically in handling voluminous Requests for Assistance (RFA) filed by land-based and sea-based workers. “POEA has been receiving large numbers of employment related RFAs from overseas Filipino workers that it has sought the help of the NCMB,” Atty. Ronda D. Malimban, officer-in-charge of Conciliation-Mediation Division of the NCMB said. Under the agreement, the NCMB shall dispatch conciliator-mediators every Tuesday and Thursday to interview RFA filers at the POEA. “The conduct of conciliation-mediation conferences for the RFA filer and responding party shall be handled by the same conciliator-mediator,” Atty. Malimban Read More …
By Edwin P. Sallan Gabby Concepcion Gabby Concepcion and Sharon Cuneta ended their four-year marriage in 1987. After that, they still managed to appear together on the big screen for the last time in Laurice Guillen’s “Una Kang Naging Akin” in 1991. That was 22 years ago. Still, as far as their fans are concerned, Sharon and Gabby have remained one of the greatest screen couples in Philippine cinema. And yes, the clamor for them to do a long-overdue reunion project is getting louder than ever. Time and again, both Gabby and Sharon have personally expressed their interest to see that project come to fruition. “Alam nyo, gusto kong mapanood ang movie nayan,” Gabby quipped when asked about it again during the recent story conference for his latest television project — TV5’s upcoming supernatural series “Cassandra: Warrior Angel”. In explaining why it has been taking so long for such a project to finally get off the ground, Gabby explains that they’re still looking for the right material for it. “I always believe that any project starts with a good story. If you have a good story, you can also branch out with good sub-stories. Right now, I still don’t know kung anong klaseng story ang puwede naming gawin. Is it going to be a drama or a comedy? What is it? I do have an idea but I don’t want to say it yet. But yes, we’re still open to suggestions,” he declared. He said he has discussed such a Read More …
(Department of Agriculture logo) The Department of Agriculture will provide an additional supply of rice and basic food items for Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, and Basilan to satisfy the increased demand due to the influx of returning Filipinos and refugees from Sabah. Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala has instructed concerned DA officials to ensure a steady supply of rice of other basic food items in the three provinces to prevent a shortage and undue increase in prices. He instructed Administrator Orlan Calayag of the DA’s National Food Authority to sustain the delivery of rice, in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and respective local governments units (LGUs). Sec. Alcala also instructed the DA regional directors in Mindanao to send additional supply of cassava, which also serves as a major staple, to Tawi-Tawi and Sulu. In a report to Sec. Alcala, Calayag said the NFA as of March 9, has delivered an initial 2,200 bags (50 kilos each) to Tawi-Tawi and Sulu (at 1,000 bags each), and 200 bags in Zamboanga City. The DSWD has allotted the rice for Filipino returnees from Sabah. The NFA is shipping 180 to 250 bags of rice, two to three times a week, to Suu, and the NFA regional office in Davao is ready to ship 50,000 bags to Sulu and Tawi-Tawi, Calayag said. Other NFAl regional offices, particularly in Metro Manila or NCR and Region 6 (Western Visayas), are also set to send additional rice stocks to Zamboanga for delivery to the Read More …
(DOF Seal) The Department of Finance, in partnership with the Asian Institute Management, launched today the first ever master’s program customized for its employees. The initiative responds to the Philippines’ various development challenges by cultivating technical and management skill in government officials. The Executive Masters in Development Management Public Finance program is a rigorous 20-month modularized program that combines managerial economics, public finance and budgeting, and statistics for strategic management that graduate students will relate to their official work in the government. “We don’t want government jobs to be dead-end jobs. We want to make government agencies into learning organizations that are also true meritocracies,” Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima said. AIM president Dr. Steven Dekrey for his part said, “The program is designed to enhance skills and capabilities necessary for public finance employees to develop a world view of Asia and beyond.” The program will build on concentration courses in budgeting and program analysis, public debt and capital markets, revenue policy and administration, benefit-cost analysis, governmental accounting and financial reporting, and public program evaluation. As compared with other career development opportunities within and for government workers, the program will be renewed every academic year and the curriculum continuously modified to address current challenges. “In the past, we have not invested enough to build growth capacity within our institutions. With programs such as this partnership with AIM, we want to align the interests of our people with the interests of the government and the interests of the country. This is a Read More …