June 2013 – Page 25

5 foreigners may face online theft raps

News

Jun 162013

By Christine O. AvendañoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 3:47 am | Monday, June 17th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—Charges were recommended by the National Bureau of Investigation last Friday against what an NBI report said were five Chinese and/or Taiwanese nationals allegedly involved in the online theft of credit card information. In a June 14 letter to Prosecutor General Claro Arellano, NBI Director Nonnatus Caesar Rojas sought inquest proceedings against Andong Ye, Shizhong Zhou, Wei Sheng, Yantai Luo and Yangfeng Luo, all of 42-3 Forest Rd., Carmenville subdivision in Angeles City. Rojas recommended that charges for violation of Republic Act No. 8484, the Access Devices Regulation Act of 1998, be filed against the five. Based on intelligence reports and armed with a search warrant from a court, Rojas said an NBI intelligence team swooped down on the residence of a Mr. Wang in Angeles City to verify information about the place. Mr. Wang was alleged to be “in collusion” with a Chinese syndicate engaged in fraudulent acts using access devices. But Mr. Wang was not at the house when the NBI team came. “Intelligence sources revealed this foreign syndicate conducts fraudulent online transactions and steals credit card information through hacking and other malicious representation on the Internet via equipment like telephones, computers, routers, access devices, modems, two-way radios and scripted documents,” said Rojas in a three-page letter to the Department of Justice. Confiscated from the residence were assorted credit cards, a skimming device, routers, a laptop, modem, printer, telephones and various documents. “…(M)ere possession Read More …

DOST launches gov’t email system, cloud

Entertainment

Jun 162013

MANILA (Mabuhay) – The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) on Monday launched key information and communication technology (ICT) applications and services, to kick off ICT Month. Among the apps and services introduced are the Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), government-wide email system (GovMail), government cloud (GovCloud), Agency Records Inventory System (AgRIS), and Government Website Template. […]

Diplomats laud Aquino’s economic gains, peace deal with MILF

Entertainment

Jun 162013

MANILA, June 12 (Mabuhay) – Members of the diplomatic corps on Wednesday lauded the Aquino administration for its economic gains and the peace pact it entered with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). During the traditional Independence Day toast in Malacañang, Archbishop Guiseppe Pinto, dean of the diplomatic corps, cited the Philippine government for the […]

Biazon backs Ping as anti-smuggling czar

Entertainment

Jun 162013

MANILA (Mabuhay) – Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon welcomes the possible appointment of Senator Ping Lacson in an anti-smuggling task force. “We would welcome any help, especially from a person like Senator Lacson who has a proven track record in law enforcement,” he said. President Aquino earlier said he has offered Cabinet posts to both Lacson […]

BRP Ramon Alcaraz weapons ‘accurate’

Entertainment

Jun 162013

CHARLESTON, South Carolina, June 10 – More than a year after it was turned over by the United States, the Philippine Navy’s latest acquisition, the BRP Ramon Alcaraz finally sailed for Manila on Monday in a voyage that would take almost two months. The Alcaraz left shortly before 10 a.m. on Monday, a day after Ambassador Jose L. […]

PH, Taiwan shun force

News

Jun 162013

Talks to resolve fishing disputes start By Christine O. AvendañoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 12:09 am | Monday, June 17th, 2013 The Philippines and Taiwan have “agreed in principle” to avoid the use of force in fishing disputes, as they begin to resolve a row over the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman in overlapping waters last month. Officials of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (Meco) and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (Teco) reached the agreement during their preparatory meeting on fishery cooperation held in Manila on Friday, Meco Chairman Amadeo Perez said on Sunday. The meeting came as both Manila and Taipei concluded their cooperative investigation of the fatal shooting of Taiwanese fisherman Hung Shih-chen, 65, by Filipino coast guards. The National Bureau of Investigation, after examining evidence and witnesses here and in Taiwan, resolved the case last week, with a recommendation to bring criminal and administrative charges against coast guards who fired on the Taiwanese fishing boat Guan Ta Hsin 28 off Balintang Island on May 9. Taiwanese investigators who also looked at evidence and examined witnesses here and in their country have not yet announced their conclusions, but Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Thursday said she expected the Taiwanese findings not to be too far from the results of the NBI probe. De Lima submitted the NBI investigative report to President Aquino on Tuesday. The shooting death of Hung sparked public anger in Taiwan. Taipei demanded an apology from the Philippine government, compensation for Hung’s family, Read More …

Out-of-this-world teamwork lessons from NASA

Economy

Jun 162013

Out-of-this-world teamwork lessons from NASA

MANILA, Philippines – Businesses and organizations can learn from all walks of life, from winning athletes to musicians and artists, to name a few. Even astronauts. T.K. “Ken” Mattingly is a former NASA astronaut, a member of the Apollo 13 and 16 missions, and was immortalized in the Hollywood blockbuster Apollo 13, in which actor Gary Sinise played him. A few years back I invited Ken to speak to my P&G team about teamwork and how those amazing NASA teams of the 1960s and 1970s took the world by storm with the moon landing, and even “successful failures” such as the safe return of the aborted Apollo 13 mission. And was the lesson a doozy! I’ll let Ken tell the story that illustrates the teamwork theme of NASA: “We were in quarantine right before Apollo 13, so we wouldn’t pick up any illnesses. So we couldn’t see our families or anyone outside. There were many hours of boredom right before launch, so I decided that each night I would go out to the launch pad and study a different part of the lunar module. I would be better prepared than I ever was before. Lifestyle Feature ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “One night, I was out on the pad and I ran into one of our engineers working at 3 a.m. on an electrical panel. The engineer was startled by my presence and demanded, ‘Who are you?’ When I replied, ‘I am Ken Mattingly, the pilot of Read More …

Export opportunities opening up in Iraq

Economy

Jun 162013

MANILA, Philippines – Iraq is shaping up to be a promising export destination and potential investment and joint venture partner for Philippine enterprises. This comes about after the two countries recently agreed to explore bilateral opportunities in trade and investment. Iraq has expressed interest in importing from the Philippines raw and finished products including electronics, auto parts, polypropylene granules, furniture, processed foods, fresh and frozen agricultural products, garments, raw and refined sugar, vegetable oil, coconut oil, dairy products, baby milk formulas, tobacco leaves, and yellow corn. Additionally, the Middle East country seeks technical assistance and joint-venture agreements in the production of fertilizers, petrochemicals, cigarettes, sugar, automobile tires, raw rubber, and cement. There are also opportunities for Philippine service companies wishing to tap the Iraqi market. The nation needs providers of training courses in strategic planning, data gathering, and preparing statistical reports. As part of their cooperation, the Philippines is inviting Iraqi businessmen to attend trade fairs and conferences in the country, such as the Manila FAME in October this year. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 There are also exploratory talks on opening a Philippine commercial center in Baghdad for exhibiting Filipino commodities and products. To promote private-sector collaboration, the two countries will facilitate the establishment of a joint business council of Iraqi and Filipino industry representatives. On the investment side, Iraq is encouraging Filipino companies and entrepreneurs to invest in the country and avail themselves of incentives under the Iraqi investment law. The Philippines, for its Read More …

Philex Mining wraps up 4-mo rehab of Padcal

Economy

Jun 162013

Philex Mining wraps up 4-mo rehab of Padcal

MANILA, Philippines – Listed Philex Mining Corp. is expected to finish the rehabilitation of its Padcal mine in Benguet next month, paving the way for the sale of additional shares to finance projects in the facility. “(Rehabilitation) has proceeded well. Actually, we’re already at the tail-end of the process,” said Philex chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan. “We are now applying for the lifting of the (mining) suspension and that is pending,” he added. Operations of the Padcal mine were suspended in August after its tailings pond collapsed. Late in February, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau allowed Philex to reopen a portion of the Padcal gold and copper mine to conduct remediation measures for tailings facility storage number. 3. The company has also paid P1.034 billion in penalty to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for the spill that affected Balog Creek and Agno River. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “The major work has been the construction of the spillway, which should be finished by the end of this month,” Pangilinan told reporters. Philex, the country’s largest miner, has substantially filled up the sinkhole that caused the operations to halt almost a year ago, he pointed out. Moving forward, Philex is planning to sell more than P12 billion worth of shares to finance other projects, including the construction of a new tailings pond in Benguet. Proceeds will also be used to fund an exploration program of the Silangan and Kalayaan mining projects in Surigao del Norte. The Read More …

LBP to hike loans to rural banks

Economy

Jun 162013

MANILA, Philippines – State-owned Land Bank of the Philippines expects to increase its loans coursed through rural banks to provide more people in the countryside greater access to funds. Landbank president and CEO Gilda Pico said “we would be jacking up our loans to rural banks”. Declining to specify as to how much the increase would be, Pico noted that as of April 2013, Landbank’s loan portfolio to rural banks amounted to P7 billion. At the same time, Pico has vowed to look into complaints that some banks, including Landbank, tend to unfairly compete with rural banks in capturing local government units (LGUs) accounts. “We will discuss this with concerned rural banks. Landbank has always been a partner of rural banks in serving the countryside,” she said. “We have been giving the RBs loans through the years. We have to resolve this issue because rural banks are our partners,” Pico added. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 It was learned that some LGUs normally request the government financial institutions (GFIs) and some commercial banks to offer a so-called consolidated loan package which also carries lower interest rates than that of rural banks. Included in the consolidated loan package of GFIs, it was noted, are salary loans to government employees which apparently are also being eyed by the RBs. During an open forum at the 60th Annual Convention of the Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) deputy governor Nestor Espenilla said they Read More …

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