STATE subsidies declined by almost 50% in November as the government gave less financial assistance in the month, data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed.
Jan 122014
Jan 122014
THE GOVERNMENT will transfer a number of foreign airlines’ operations from Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 (NAIA-1) to Terminal 3 (NAIA-3) in April to alleviate congestion in the older terminal.
Jan 122014
(First of two parts) WITH the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) ’s intensified focus on enforcement and audits, taxpayers need to understand the investigation and assessment process and the available remedies under the law, particularly now that the recently issued Revenue Regulations (RR) No. 18-2013, dated Nov. 28, 2013 and which took effect on Dec. 15, 2013, introduced major changes to the BIR’s assessment processes.
Jan 122014
Nearly 12 million households said they considered themselves poor as 2013 drew to a close, according to a new survey by pollster Social Weather Stations. According to the SWS survey, taken from Dec. 11 to 16 last year, 55 percent of respondents or 11.8 million families, said they were poor. This was higher than the 50 percent of families who considered themselves poor in September, the SWS said in its report published Monday in the Business World website. Also, 41 percent of respondents, equivalent to 8.8 million families, considered themselves food-poor, four points higher than in September. “Both self-rated poverty and self-rated food poverty rose from the previous quarter, and are above their four-quarter averages for 2013,” the SWS noted. The increases in the national numbers for self-rated poverty and food poverty were “roughly due to increases in all areas except Mindanao.” The SWS also found that the full-year results for 2013 – with self-rated poverty at 52 percent – were similar to marks in 2012. The pollster added self-rated food poverty in 2013 averaged 39 percent, two points down from 2012. The survey used face-to-face interviews with 1,550 adult Filipinos nationwide. In the survey, respondents were asked to choose whether their families were poor, not poor or “on the line” in both poverty and food-poverty categories. Respondents were also asked how much money would be required for their households not to be considered poor. Sampling error margins of ±2.5% for national, ±4% for the Visayas and ±6% for Metro Read More …
Jan 122014
LA rally exposes “modern day slaves” in US PHOTO by Benny Uy LOS ANGELES – Former caregiver Angela Guanzon, 36, recalled her two-year nightmare at an elderly care facility in Long Beach, California, where she worked in slave-like conditions. “I worked 18 hours a day, with very little pay, and slept on the floor,” said Guanzon, one of the Filipino victims of labor trafficking who joined the two-mile “Walk 4 Freedom” in Los Angeles yesterday (Sunday in Manila). “I was threatened when I complained and when I tried to escape.” Holding a placard that said, “Human Trafficking: Don’t Let It Happen to You,” Guanzon urged other victims to come out of the shadows and get help. “Many of the victims, especially my fellow Filipinos, are ashamed or afraid to come out and tell their story,” said the Bacolod native, who was rescued by the FBI in 2008. She is now a survivor-organizer for the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking (CAST), a nonprofit organization that provided Guanzon with shelter and legal assistance. Angela Guanzon, a victim of unscrupulous labor recruiters PHOTO by Benny Uy Guanzon was one of about 40 Filipino “modern day slaves” helped by CAST in the Greater Los Angeles Area alone. Most of them were victims of unscrupulous labor recruiters “who prey on those who seek a better life in the US,” CAST Executive Director Kay Buck told the Inquirer. “Not only do they end up being enslaved but also in debt bondage,” she said. “This human Read More …
Jan 122014
From left: “Figure Eight” by Jomar Delluba, “Ball and Chain”, “Knockout” MANILA, Philippines – Pakil, Laguna-based artist Jomar Delluba investigates the creativity of children for mischief in his first solo exhibition “Maldita,” which opens at Galerie Joaquin Podium on Jan. 16 at 6:30 p.m. Jomar Delluba sees his art as an intensely personal experience. His works use metaphors to articulate the idea of everyday people in his characteristically-brilliant style. The works in this show sees Delluba playing with and upending traditional concepts of childhood mischief. He paints in a style that, at first glance, is cutesy but becomes increasingly surreal upon closer examination. There is a painting of a girl in pigtails with her hand over her right eye as if she was punched. What is surreal, however, is the disinterested look on her face — as if she was already used to such physical punishment. But aren’t little girls supposed to be spared from such brutality? Delluba’s work hangs that question over the canvas, but also speeds past it — a way of turning expectations on their heads. This is the sort of nuanced discourse that Jomar Delluba presents in “Maldita.” The show is on view until Jan. 27. Galerie Joaquin is at Unit B12-B13, lower ground floor, The Podium, ADB Ave., Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City. For information, call 634-7954 or visit www.galeriejoaquin.com.
Jan 122014
Associated Press 8:46 pm | Sunday, January 12th, 2014 Archbishop Orlando B. Quevedo INQUIRER FILE PHOTO VATICAN CITY — The following is a list of the 19 men named on Sunday by Pope Francis to be installed as cardinals in a Vatican ceremony on February 22: Pietro Parolin, Titular Archbishop of Acquapendente, Secretary of State. Lorenzo Baldisseri, Titular Archbishop of Diocleziana, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops. Gerhard Ludwig Mueller, Archbishop-Bishop emeritus of Regensburg, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Beniamino Stella, Titular Archbishop of Midila, Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy. Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, United Kingdom. Leopoldo Jose Brenes Solorzano, Archbishop of Managua, Nicaragua. Gerald Cyprien Lacroix, Archbishop of Quebec, Canada. Jean-Pierre Kutwa, Archbishop of Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Orani Joao Tempesta, O.Cist., Archbishop of Rio de Janeiro. Gualtiero Bassetti, Archbishop of Perugia-Citta della Pieve, Italy. Mario Aurelio Poli, Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Andrew Yeom Soo jung, Archbishop of Seoul, South Korea. Ricardo Ezzati Andrello, S.D.B., Archbishop of Santiago del Cile, Chile. Philippe Nakellentuba Ouedraogo, Archbishop of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Orlando B. Quevedo, O.M.I., Archbishop of Cotabato, Philippines. Chibly Langlois, Bishop of Les Cayes, Haiti. Loris Francesco Capovilla, Titular Archbishop of Mesembria. Fernando Sebastian Aguilar, C.M.F., Archbishop emeritus of Pamplona. Kelvin Edward Felix, Archbishop emeritus of Castries. RELATED STORY: Pope Francis names 19 new cardinals, focusing on the poor Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to Read More …
Jan 112014
By Kristine Angeli SabilloINQUIRER.net 12:42 pm | Sunday, January 12th, 2014 In this Wednesday Feb. 7, 2001 file photo, Ariel Sharon, then Israel’s Prime Minister-elect, looks up as he touches Judaism holiest site, the Western Wall, in Jerusalem. The son of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says his father has died on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2014. The 85-year-old Sharon had been in a coma since a debilitating stroke eight years ago. His son Gilad Sharon said: “He has gone. He went when he decided to go.” AP MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Sunday expressed sympathies on the death of former Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. “The Philippines joins the government and people of Israel in mourning the passage of their former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon,” DFA spokesperson Raul Hernandez said in a text message to media. Sharon died on Saturday at the age of 85 at a hospital near Tel Aviv. He was in a coma since suffering a massive stroke in 2006. “He was a bold and vigorous leader in war and in peace. May his important contributions in the quest for peace be long remembered,” Hernandez said. The former prime minister was a controversial leader, both loved and hated by people. His “ruthless methods” as a political and military leader earned him the moniker “The Bulldozer.” RELATED STORIES: Ex-Israel premier Sharon dead Major events in the life of Ariel Sharon Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for Read More …
Jan 112014
By Kristine Angeli SabilloINQUIRER.net 12:41 pm | Sunday, January 12th, 2014 MANILA, Philippines – Fisherfolk on Sunday wrote to outgoing Chinese Ambassador Ma Keqing, asking China to recall its new policy requiring foreign fishing vessels to ask approval before entering parts of the South China Sea. FILE PHOTO “We the leaders and representatives of Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya), a national federation of small fisherfolk in the Philippines, submit this humble appeal to the Chinese government to recall the new fishing rule that demands foreign fishing vessels to enter in the disputed West Philippine Sea (South China Sea),” the letter, signed by Pamalakaya vice chairperson Salvador France, said. Pamalakaya asked the envoy to relay their message and push for a diplomatic and peaceful resolution on the continuing conflict between the Philippines and China, as well as other claimant countries. “Madam Ambassador, we ask the Chinese government to be extra prudent in dealing with the West Philippine Sea conflict. It would be better if Beijing seeks bilateral and inter-nation dialogues with other claimants rather than engage in hardcore assertion of something that needs to be carefully studied,” France said. He said all the claimants should instead unite “to frustrate the intervention of the United States – the biggest threat to world peace according to international view.” China, through the Hainan Provincial People’s Congress, recently issued a new fisheries law requiring foreign fishing vessels to obtain approval from its regional authorities before fishing or surveying a large portion of the Read More …
Jan 112014
Philippine Daily Inquirer 5:09 am | Sunday, January 12th, 2014 Bureau of Immigration building. Photo from Bureau of Immmigration website MANILA, Philippines—The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has warned Indian nationals against entering into fraudulent marriages to acquire permanent residence in the Philippines. Immigration Commissioner Siegfried Mison said the bureau summoned several Indians after discovering that their marriages to Filipinos had been arranged to evade immigration restrictions. Mison said the bureau discovered that the marital status of Indian nationals supposedly married to Filipinos were not reflected on their passports. As of December, 70,216 Indian nationals were recorded in the country, most of them engaged in money lending. This number is higher than the 60,415 in 2012. Based on BI records, four Indians have been arrested for falsifying their applications for a five-year temporary resident visa (TRV) by submitting fraudulent documents. “We discovered the suspects resorted to fake marriages and used it as a ploy to acquire residence visas,” he said. Annotations in the passports of Indian applicants should reflect the name of their Filipino spouses to avoid fraudulent TRV applications. “This measure is aimed at protecting our people from exploitation by schemers,” said Mison, adding that failure to comply with the requirements would mean cancellation of the TRV. Tina G. Santos RELATED STORIES: By October 2015, immigration officials to accept only e-Passports Immigration relief for Fil-Ams sought Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step Read More …