UK funnels P3.7M to improve writing skills of Ombudsman lawyers

 News
Jul 192013
 
UK funnels P3.7M to improve writing skills of Ombudsman lawyers

In a bid to make the decisions of the Office of the Ombudsman more reader-friendly, the British Embassy on Friday launched a project that will improve the writing skills of the agency’s lawyers. Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales said the Rapid Assessment and Seminar on Case Analysis and Legal Draftsmanship (RASCALD) project aims to make the lawyers’ writing style “lucid, concise and logical.” “While it is difficult to change the writing style of everyone. But perhaps what we have in mind when we say writing style is that we should be lucid, concise and logical while accenting early on what the case is about,” she said. The RASCALD initiative will run from August 2013 to February 2014 and will concentrate on how the agency’s lawyers write decisions. Some 280 Ombudsman prosecutors and field lawyers will undergo the seven-month RASCALD enhancement classes for skills development on deciding cases and drafting action papers. Zero case backlog According to a press release by the Office of the Ombudsman, the RASCALD initiative projects an increase in case disposition rate by 25 percent by end-2015 and eventually, a zero case backlog by 2018. “We are happy to support the RASCALD project, helping to deliver the top priorities of achieving a full disposition of high profile cases and zero backlog by 2018,” British Embassy Charge d’ Affaires Trevor Lewis said in his message of support. Morales thanked the British Embassy for the grant, noting that the benefits of the seminars will not only be short term, but rather would Read More …

NDRRMC: Storm Isang leaves two dead, two injured

 News
Jul 192013
 
NDRRMC: Storm Isang leaves two dead, two injured

Two people were killed while two others injured as Tropical Storm Isang (Cimaron) passed through the Philippines earlier this week, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Friday. In its 10 a.m. report, the NDRRMC said the two fatalities were hit by lightning in Tagudin town in Ilocos Sur last Wednesday night. The NDRRMC said the incident occurred at 9:10 p.m. Wednesday in Barangay Farola. It identified the dead as Rhea Jane Maseliones, 8; and RaymundJay Maseliones, 11. Reported injured in the incident were Evelyn Cabarsi, 31; and Elejo Cabarsi, 23. Isang made landfall over Isabela Wednesday and intensified into a tropical storm. It exited the Philippine area of responsibility early Thursday. However, the NDRRMC did not record any other incident. Local authorities in northern Luzon had prepared for the effects of Isang, prepositioning heavy equipment to clear roads that could be blocked by floods or landslides. — RSJ, GMA News

De Lima: Possible witnesses to killings of Ozamiz gangmen are not missing

 News
Jul 192013
 
De Lima: Possible witnesses to killings of Ozamiz gangmen are not missing

The five possible witnesses to the killing in Laguna of the Ozamiz robbery group members are not missing, said Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Friday afternoon to clarify an earlier report. “They are not missing. [Authorities] were just having a hard time accessing them dahil ayaw lang pumayag yung parents and I think that’s a natural feeling,” De Lima was quoted as saying in a report on Balitanghali. “Hayaan ang CHR (Commission on Human Rights) na mag-access din sa Kanila para mas maging comfortable sila,” she added. A report on “24 Oras” on Thursday said the witnesses were missing. Also, the report said one witness living just 50 meters away from where the killings took place purportedly saw how gunmen in two vehicles ambushed the police convoy transporting Ricky Cadavero alias “Kambal” and Wilfredo Panogalinga Jr. alias “Kulot” of the notorious Ozamiz gang. It was a different version from that of the Ozamiz gangmen’s police escorts, who have said that their convoy was intercepted and shot at by gunmen on motorcycles, the report added. Also on Thursday,  a GMA News source tried contacting the family but they could no longer be reached. The source, who wished to remain anonymous, detailed that members of the family had met with NBI agents on Wednesday midnight, along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City. However, during the meeting, about 20 members of the Quezon City Police District arrived, the reporty said. There was a tense moment between the law enforcers, the television report said. Read More …

Oil hits 16-month high on good US economic news

 General
Jul 182013
 
Oil hits 16-month high on good US economic news

NEW YORK — The price of oil shot to a 16-month high Thursday on signs the U.S. job market is improving, although not by enough to prompt the Federal Reserve to pull back on its bond-buying program. Benchmark crude for August delivery rose $1.56 to finish at $108.04 a barrel, the highest close since March 19, 2012. Oil has jumped more than $11 a barrel in July, and pushed up the price of gasoline along with it. Gasoline futures have gained 13 percent since July 1, and the average price for a gallon of gas at the pump has risen 18 cents, or 5 percent, to $3.67. On Thursday U.S. economic news was good on two fronts: The Labor Department reported a drop in claims for unemployment benefits and the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic region grew in July at the fastest pace in more than two years. Oil markets are also getting support this week from comments by Ben Bernanke that the Fed will support the U.S. economy as long as necessary. The Fed chairman told lawmakers in appearances Wednesday and Thursday that there was no preset schedule for ending the existing stimulus program, raising hopes it may not end as quickly as some had feared. In London, Brent crude rose 9 cents to $108.70 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 In other energy futures trading on Nymex: — Wholesale gasoline was flat Read More …

Gov’t disowns anti-China rallies to be held worldwide

 News
Jul 182013
 
Gov’t disowns anti-China rallies to be held worldwide

By Christine O. AvendañoPhilippine Daily Inquirer 5:44 am | Friday, July 19th, 2013 Department Foreign Affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez: Anti-China protests led by private individuals and group. INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—The government said it has nothing to do with the planned one-day global action on July 24 by Filipinos around the world to protest against Chinese incursions in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), but will not try to stop it either. “Filipinos have all the right to express and voice out in a peaceful manner their positions and sentiments on the issue of the West Philippine Sea,” said Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez, the Department Foreign Affairs (DFA) spokesperson. ‘In private capacity’ At a news conference, Hernandez stressed that the government “did not sanction” the Global Day of Protest to be staged worldwide by the West Philippine Sea Coalition, saying these were being led by “individuals and groups in their private capacity.” “These are not sanctioned by the government, but being in a democracy, people have a right to voice out their position on different issues,” Hernandez said. Asked whether the protests could inflame the already tense relations between Manila and Beijing, Hernandez said the DFA hoped it would not as people just want to express their positions on the issue. Hernandez also said the global protest action will not affect the Philippines’ arbitration case against China before the United Nations. “The arbitrary tribunal will proceed with the case based upon its rules and merits of this case, Read More …

PH expects to be lifted from US air blacklist

 News
Jul 182013
 
PH expects to be lifted from US air blacklist

Agence France-Presse 7:52 pm | Thursday, July 18th, 2013 FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines expects to be removed from a US air safety blacklist this year, opening a lucrative market for its carriers, an aviation regulator said Thursday. John Andrews, deputy director-general of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), said he was very confident the upgrade would occur following a similar decision by the European Union last week. “We’re going to make it. (It’s) as simple as that,” Andrews told AFP in an interview. The US Federal Aviation Administration said in 2008 that the Philippines was failing to comply with international safety standards, and banned its airlines from expanding services to the United States. The European Union banned all Philippine carriers from flying to Europe in 2010 for similar reasons. Reforms put in place since then, including a law creating a new aviation regulator, the CAAP, allowed the Philippines to satisfy the concerns of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in February. This led to the EU’s decision last week to allow Philippine Airlines to begin flying into its airspace. The EU said it was reviewing the case of other Filipino carriers. Andrews said he expected US aviation regulators to make similar findings when it carried out an audit before the end of the year. He said Filipino regulators had addressed safety concerns by physically tracking down every aircraft registered in the Philippines and getting their owners to submit documentation. This was to make sure the Read More …

Phl stocks bounce back to 6,600 level on US market gains

 Economy
Jul 182013
 
Phl stocks bounce back to 6,600 level on US market gains

MANILA, Philippine (Xinhua) – Investors repositioned themselves in the local equities today sending the local index rallying back to the 6,600 level. The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index jumped by 1.12 percent or 73.63 points to 6,648.35. The broader all-share index rose by 1.11 percent or 44.47 points to 4,051.34.Trading volume reached 2.35 billion shares worth P7.43 billion ($170.96 million) with 109 stocks advancing, 35 declining, and 46 unchanged. All six counters were up. Online brokerage 2TradeAsia.com said the lack of leads locally and overseas might have motivated some investors to seek guidance to the performance of the Dow Jones industrial average index on Wednesday. Dow Jones was up by 18.67 points ahead of US Federal Reserve Ben Bernake’s statement. The US Fed’s statement is among the most awaited development as it would give investors hint on the next move of the US “The spotlight might revert to institutional fund managers’ reaction to Fed chief Bernanke’s statement before the US Congress, specifically on indications as to when they would slow on their earlier planned $80 billion per month bond purchase plan,” 2TradeAsia.com said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Analyst Justino Calaycay of Accord Capital Equities Corp. said in his daily stock market comment that since the local index hit the low of 5,789.06, it has drawn a “higher high, higher low pattern in the succeeding 15 sessions.” The narrowing gap between the resistance line and support line, he said, indicates that investors are quick to withdraw Read More …

 Older Entries  Newer Entries