Maniolas

By Gaby Gloria At exactly 3:30 in the afternoon, with most of her household chores done, Nancy Surilla walks to the nearby barangay community center. There, other women from her barangay chat excitedly, sharing stories that range from daily experiences at home to the latest showbiz news. In one hand, each of these women hold golden instruments that are no larger than pencils, and no thicker than chopsticks, and in the other, long, colorful strips of plastic. As they chat, the women weave the golden instruments through the plastic strips, each creating a product that will eventually become a wallet or bag. Shortly after Nancy’s arrival, a young woman arrives and proceeds to teach them a new technique in the art of crochet. Nancy, like the other women in the center, is part of the non-profit organization called Invisible Sisters. Founded in 2009 by American artist Ann Wizer, the Invisible Institute was a simple solution to the complex problems of poverty and garbage. The Invisible Sisters crocheting clutch bags. INVISIBLE trains and employs Filipino women from depressed communities to make crocheted bags out of waste such as the common plastic sando bags normally used in wet markets and commercial establishments. Each week, these women attend a training session where an instructor introduces them to innovative techniques for preparing recycled plastic as raw material and executing various crocheting techniques. When they complete the 48-session program, INVISIBLE hires them to be part of the official production team that supplies sales outlets such Read More …

A representative from the office of a Cagayan Valley lawmaker faced government investigators on Friday in connection with the fake Special Allotment Release Order (SARO) received by a regional office of the Department of Agriculture (DA). A report on GMA News’ “24 Oras” said Enrico Arao went to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) office in Manila after he was summoned to the inquiry and asked to submit the supposedly fake SARO. The Commission on Audit defines a SARO as a “specific authority issued to one or more identified agencies to incur obligations not exceeding a given amount during a specified period for the purpose indicated.” Arao, whose superior wasn’t identified in the report, denied any wrongdoing, although he admitted submitting the SARO to the DA. “I thought it was a regular SARO,” he said. “I presumed its regularity because I didn’t even think na it would be a fake SARO because it came from the office. That’s why I assumed its regularity. It was in good faith that I gave it to DA.” The SARO, which was for a P161 million fund, was meant for farm-to-market road projects in the entire Cagayan Valley, the report said. Arao said he only learned that the SARO was fake when the NBI subpoenaed him for its investigation. Budget Secretary Butch Abad had earlier said they were alerted on the existence of fake SAROs after a regional unit office of the DA called them on October 22 to inquire about the signed copies Read More …

By Matikas SantosINQUIRER.net 6:17 pm | Friday, November 29th, 2013 Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, left, and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, right, arrive at a press conference at the end of the Iranian nuclear talks in Geneva, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013. The European Union’s top diplomat and Iran’s foreign minister said nuclear talks between six world powers and Tehran did not seal a deal. (AP Photo/Jason Reed, Pool) MANILA, Philippines – The European Union (EU) on Friday called for calm over East Asia after China established an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) and which the United States and its key allies refused to recognize by sending airplanes and defying China’s rules. “The EU calls upon all parties to take steps to calm the situation, to promote trust building measures and reach out diplomatically to seek peaceful, cooperative solutions according to international law, in order to defuse tensions and resolve differences constructively,” EU High representative Catherine Ashton said in a statement. China had earlier announced the establishment of the East China Sea ADIZ covering the airspace above waters in between its coast and Japan. Disputed islands in the waters between the two countries were covered in the zone. China listed rules of identification that aircraft must comply with when they enter the zone otherwise “China’s armed forces will adopt defensive emergency measures to respond to aircraft that do not cooperate,” the Ministry of National Defense said in their announcement. The United States, however, defied the ADIZ Read More …