Maniolas

By Frances MangosingINQUIRER.net 8:54 am | Tuesday, August 6th, 2013 The BRP Ramon Alcaraz is the second Hamilton-class cutter that was acquired by the Philippine Navy under the Foreign Military Sales Program of the United States. US EMBASSY PHOTO RELEASE SUBIC BAY, Philippines — The Philippines’ two biggest warships expected to boost maritime patrol amid a territorial dispute with China may be four-decade-old Hamilton-class cutters, but defense and military experts believe that acquiring these types of secondhand vessels was still worth it. “The positive outweighs the negative concerns” in getting Hamilton-class frigates for the Navy fleet, said Max Montero, an Australian-based security consultant and a former naval reservist officer of the Philippine Navy, in his blog post which he updates regularly on defense issues. In a separate interview with INQUIRER.net, Commander Joe Anthony Orbe, commanding officer of the BRP del Pilar, the country’s first Hammer-class weather high endurance cutter (WHEC) acquired from the United States, in 2011, said that Hamilton-class cutters were a good choice for used warships. President Benigno Aquino III will lead aceremony today, Tuesday, here welcoming the arrival of the second Hammer-class cutter acquired by the Philippines — the BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PF-16) — which arrived in the Philippines last Friday after a nearly two-month voyage from the US. Orbe, said, however that the Navy would still need to acquire other ships that would give complete capability. “It is a better platform than the ageing naval assets of the PN that negatively affects their capability considering the Read More …

By Kristine Angeli SabilloINQUIRER.net 2:10 pm | Monday, August 5th, 2013 Vice President Jejomar Binay. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines – Vice President Jejomar Binay on Monday called for the review and subsequent amendment of the Salary Standardization Law to address the exodus of highly skilled government workers to higher paying jobs abroad. “I call on Congress to pursue revisions in the Salary Standardization Law. We need to make sure that we can offer our government workers, especially those performing highly technical work, a compensation package that sustains their families and recognizes their skills and competencies,” Binay said in a statement. The Vice President said the review of salaries and benefits of employees is needed to stop the “brain drain” involving highly skilled government workers, especially amid reports that another weather forecaster and eight aerobridge operators of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) have left the country for higher paying jobs abroad. “It is simply not right that the country is deprived of the technical knowledge and expertise of Filipinos who would otherwise be more than willing to serve the country, but are forced to look for greener pastures just to meet the most basic needs of their families,” he said. Binay emphasized the need to retain their services, saying that they play an important role in making the country’s economic gains more tangible. “Aside from ensuring safety and efficiency, our government workers perform public services necessary to implement the national government’s development policy and address concerns of the business Read More …