MANILA, June 15 (Mabuhay) — The government still adheres to its zero-casualty policy as the typhoons start to enter the country, a Palace official said on Saturday. “The target remains the same, ‘yung zero casualty natin, at sana po wala namang matinding bagyo na pumasok ngunit lahat naman tayo ay naghahanda para sa onset of […]
MANILA, June 15 (Mabuhay) — Foreign nationals wishing to stay longer in the Philippines may soon avail of a long-stay visa that is good for six months, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said over the weekend. In a news release on Friday, the BI said it will launch the long-stay tourist visa – along with […]
By Jeannette I. AndradePhilippine Daily Inquirer 4:47 am | Tuesday, June 18th, 2013 AFP PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—A judge has issued warrants for the arrest of 44 Chinese and Taiwanese nationals accused of involvement in credit card fraud. Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 216 Judge Alfonso Cruz III ordered the arrest of the foreigners, who are charged with violating the Access Devices Regulation Act of 1998 for hacking into the records of credit cardholders and using the information obtained to manufacture fake credit cards. Bail for each of the accused was set at P24,000. The 44 foreigners were previously rounded up by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation’s (NBI) Technical Intelligence Division in simultaneous raids conducted in November 27 last year at Don Antonio Heights and White Plains Subdivisions. Although the NBI agents were able to confiscate a skimming device, several bogus credit cards and other electronic devices from the group, the inquest prosecutor recommended that the case be subjected to further investigation, resulting in the release of those arrested. Last month, Assistant State Prosecutor Arnold Magpantay resolved that there was probable cause to indict the foreigners for credit card fraud. In his resolution, Magpantay said that while the electronic devices appeared to be ordinary items (routers, laptop computers and phones), these could be used as tools in committing a crime. He also noted that none of the 44 Chinese and Taiwanese nationals were able to sufficiently explain their possession of skimming devices which were used in the manufacture Read More …
MANILA, June 15 (Mabuhay) — James Yap Jr. or Bimby, youngest son of President Aquino’s sister Kris Aquino, also wants to be president someday. Bimby said he will follow in the footsteps of his uncle, President Benigno “Noynoy” Auqino III. “Mama, I’m the next president,” Bimby told his mom Kris, who said: “OK why not?” […]
It’s raining season once again and we face the yearly problem of flooding in Metro Manila. I keep getting calls from broadcast media asking for interviews about the problem, its historical origins and urban redevelopment solutions. READ FULL STORY
MANILA, June 15 (Mabuhay) -– Newly weds Maricar Reyes and Richard Poon do not want to have children just yet. Reyes said they just want to enjoy each other’s company first before starting a family. “We want to know each other na kami na lang dalawa muna. Ideally, we’d like a year together at least,” […]
Associated Press 3:18 am | Tuesday, June 18th, 2013 In this March 26, 2012, file photo, residences on stilts sit along the Chao Phraya River with a construction site in the background in Bangkok, Thailand. Sea level rise projections show Bangkok could be at risk of inundation in 100 years unless preventive measures are taken. AP PHOTO/SAKCHAI LALIT BONN, Germany—From Bangkok to Miami, cities and coastal areas across the globe are already building or planning defenses to protect millions of people and key infrastructure from more powerful storm surges and other effects of global warming. Some are planning cities that will simply adapt to more water. But climate-proofing a city or coastline is expensive, as shown by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s $20-billion plan to build floodwalls, levees and other defenses against rising seas. The most vulnerable places are those with the fewest resources to build such defenses, secure their water supplies or move people to higher ground. How to pay for such measures is a burning issue in UN climate talks, which just wrapped up a session in the German city of Bonn. The following is a sampling of cities and countries around the world and what they are doing to prepare for the climatic forces that scientists say are being unleashed by global warming. Bangkok Even before the consequences of climate change became evident, scientists were well aware that Bangkok—whose southern suburbs border the Gulf of Thailand—was under serious threat from land subsidence. Sea level rise projections show Read More …
MANILA, Philippines – The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and the Department of Tourism (DOT) are working together to identify growth areas that could be developed into tourism hubs. NEDA deputy director-general Emmanuel Esguerra said they are aligning goals under the Philippine Development Plan 2011-2016 with that of the Tourism Development Plan (TDP). “Based on the tourism development plan, developments in tourism are not in immediate areas where tourists are present. Because you need other services, it could come from adjacent communities so the growth spreads even to areas that are not directly within the tourist hub,” he said. The NEDA official noted that development is not evenly spread in other parts of the country. “From the data, we observed that around 60 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) just comes from three regions, which are NCR, Southern Tagalog and Central Luzon, Mindanao is 14 percent and the rest and from the point of view of inclusive growth, you would want growth to be broad based for the other regions to partake of the benefits of growth,” he said. Esguerra said this is one strategy that could lead to growth and eventually help alleviate poverty in the country. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “Now going forward, the strategy to make that happen is to pay attention to the spatial or the geographical and sectoral dimension of growth and its possible to identify those specific areas that have very high growth potential that have good Read More …
MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) is drumming up the market’s interest in its new investment product – the exchange-traded funds (ETF) – set for launching this year. In a memorandum, the operator of the country’s sole stock exchange said it will hold a seminar about ETFs on June 28. “The forum is intended to bring together participants, fund managers, investors and other stakeholders in order to introduce investing in ETFs and to discuss the latest updates in the product,” PSE said. “It also aims to inform the participants on the rules and regulations relevant to ETFs,” it added. Industry experts will discuss how ETFs differ from other types of investments and how stakeholders can take advantage of the new investment scheme, PSE said. Late in March, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gave its partial nod to the guidelines that will allow the launching of ETFs. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 ETFs are securities and investment instruments that monitor a commodity of assets like an index fund but trades like a normal stock in an exchange. PSE president and CEO Hans B. Sicat earlier said the new product will allow investors to go beyond just cash equities. So far, PSE has 254 listed firms and 134 active trading participants. ETFs are seen to offer several advantages and investment options to investors, including liquidity especially for those who cannot directly access specific sectors in the market due to a country’s specific regulatory environment. At Read More …
SBMA chairman and administrator Roberto Garcia and Resom Phils. chairman Sang So Shin sign an agreement for the construction of a P20-billion resort complex in the Subic Bay Freeport. SUBIC BAY FREEPORT, Philippines – The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has signed a contract with Korean-owned Resom Resort Phils. (Resom) for the development in the Freeport of a P20-billion world-class tourism resort complex. In a simple ceremony held last June 13 at the Freeport, SBMA chairman and administrator Roberto V. Garcia and Resom chairman Sang So Shin signed lease development agreements that would pave the way for the construction of the landmark tourism project. The first phase of the project involves the development of a prime waterfront property previously known as the mini-golf course with a gross area of two hectares and a buildable area of 6,000 sqm. Resom is committed to invest P1.2 billion for the construction of a luxury hotel with around 300 rooms, convention facilities, pool, spa, restaurants and other support facilities. The project is being targeted to be ready to serve the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference in November 2015. The second phase of the project would cover the development of the Resom City tourism complex involving several properties in the Naval Magazine area covering around 300 hectares. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 This would include the construction of a world-class resort complex that would have hotels, condominiums, a theme park, luxury pool villas, casino and gaming operations, a waterpark and spa, health Read More …