PHL foreign service posts in Middle East, Africa brace vs. MERS-CoV threat

 Entertainment
Apr 302014
 
PHL foreign service posts in Middle East, Africa brace vs. MERS-CoV threat

A batch of 37 female overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) repatriated from Syria, arrive at 4 p.m. Friday (March 7) via EK 332. OWWA personnel and from Office of the Vice President (center photo) assist the returning OFWs upon their arrival at the Gate 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Philippine foreign officials in the Middle East, Africa and other neighboring countries met on Thursday to discuss the government’s response to the threats posed by the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus and other viruses. In a statement on Saturday, the Department of Foreign Affairs said the special meeting, which was ordered by Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, was held on the sidelines of the agency’s regional workshop on curbing trafficking in persons helo in Ankara, Turkey. It added that the officials were briefed on the MERS-CoV and other viruses and how these affect the Filipinos there. They have also reviewed individual and regional contingency plans in the event of a pandemic, the statement said. “The DFA’s goal is two-fold: To safeguard the health and safety of our countrymen who are in the affected countries and to ensure that these communicable and fatal viruses do not spread,” Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Jesus I. Yabes said. Among the critical points raised during the meeting are: securing access to health treatment for overseas Filipino nationals; enforcement of adequate protective measures for members of the Philippine Foreign Service and other government personnel at Read More …

Palace: Lacson’s ‘pork’ revelations not an interference on his ‘Yolanda’ rehab job

 Entertainment
Apr 302014
 
Palace: Lacson’s ‘pork’ revelations not an interference on his ‘Yolanda’ rehab job

Presidential Adviser on Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Panfilo M. Lacson answers questions from the media in an interview after he delivered his address at a forum in Makati City last January 23. The former senator had refused to accept his pork barrel funds from the start. He said in a privilege speech that the funds had corrupted legislators. Now, even the members of the media are being named as those who received “payolas.” (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Rehabilitation czar Panfilo Lacson might have made big revelations regarding the number of senators being implicated in the P10-billion pork barrel scam, but he is not about to make them an interference on his job as head of typhoon “Yolanda” rehabilitation efforts. “When it comes to Sec. Lacson, he said that he actually eats Yolanda for breakfast, for lunch and for dinner,” Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said in an interview on state-run dzRB Radyo ng Bayan. “At this point, we really don’t see it as interference on what Secretary Lacson is doing as rehab czar,” Valte added, expressing contentment with Lacson’s performance. Valte raised the issue following criticisms hurled at Lacson, saying that he should concentrate on carrying out tasks in his job rather than meddling with other issues. It can be recalled that Lacson made the revelation that more than a hundred government officials from the present and previous administrations have been implicated in the pork barrel scam in various interviews. Lacson, however, refused to drop names and said that the Read More …

Nationwide Job Fair this Labor Day

 General
Apr 302014
 
Nationwide Job Fair this Labor Day

7:16 pm | Wednesday, April 30th, 2014 MANILA, Philippines – Job hunting is undeniably a challenging experience and although technology and social media provide many tools to connect applicants to potential employers, a call for an appointment is not always guaranteed. To address this issue, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) together with the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) will hold the biggest Job Fair of the year on Labor Day, May 1, 2014 at all SM Supermalls nationwide. This event allows jobseekers to explore from various job opportunities, be interviewed by potential employers, and even get hired on the same day. SM Supermalls, being home to over 300, 000 employees, continues to make efforts in providing jobs to the growing Filipino workforce. Coming from a huge success last year in which 2, 400 companies joined and 394, 000 jobs were offered, this year’s Job Fair is expected to be as successful. So this coming Labor Day, be sure not to miss this big opportunity. Ready your resumes, dress to impress, and go to the nearest SM malls near you. For a complete list of the 49 participating malls and drop boxes for the Job Fair, please visit www. smsupermalls.com or www.facebook.com/smsupermalls. Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines. Tags: Labor Read More …

New pact forges US ‘rebalance’ to Asia − Goldberg

 Entertainment
Apr 302014
 
New pact forges US ‘rebalance’ to Asia − Goldberg

U.S. Marines board a KC-130J Hercules aircraft at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan, to depart for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations in the Philippines following Typhoon Haiyan, Nov. 11, 2013. The Marines are assigned to the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Force. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. David N. Hersey MANILA (Mabuhay) − The signing Monday of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) with the Philippines highlights the US government’s “rebalance” policy to Asia. This was stressed by US Ambassador to the Philippines, Philip Goldberg, during Monday’s EDCA signing ceremonies at the Armed Forces’ Commissioned Officers’ Club in Camp Aguinaldo, Monday. “After eight rounds of negotiations in as many months, it’s very fitting that we’re gathered here today to sign this landmark agreement just hours before our two presidents meet to mark a new stage in our relations and celebrate the American administration’s ‘rebalance’ to Asia,” Goldbergsaid. “As most of the people in this room probably know, the US-Philippines alliance is the oldest of our five treaty alliances in Asia and the US-Philippines mutual defense treaty signed in 1951 continues to serve us well, having contributed to the security and stability of the region for the last six decades,” he added. Goldberg said that a good example of this is the annual “Balikatan” exercises, which will kick-off on May 5. “The agreement we signed today would be an important part of the existing Mutual Defense Treaty and Visiting Forces Agreement but it will also serve to update Read More …

Judge asks SC to strike down JBC’s 5-year requirement for applicants

 Entertainment
Apr 302014
 
Judge asks SC to strike down JBC’s 5-year requirement for applicants

(Supreme Court of the Philippines} MANILA (Mabuhay) – A judge from Mindanao has asked the Supreme Court to strike down a Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) policy requiring judges to have at least five years of experience in the lower courts before applying in second-level tribunals. In his petition, presiding Judge Ferdinand R. Villanueva of the Municipal Circuit Trial Court in New Bataan, Compostela said his application to become a regional trial court (RTC) judge should be approved by the court because the JBC’s five-year requirement was in violation of the 1987 Philippine Constitution. The five-year requirement is on top of the constitutional and statutory requirement of 10 years of law practice. “It is fervently prayed that this court will issue a mandatory injunction and order the JBC to implement fully Republic Act 8557 and to order the JBC to scrap the long standing policy of five years experience over and above the ten (10) years practice of law,” said the judge. The petitioner asked the SC to “declare the unconstitutionality of the policy requiring five (5) years experience as lower court judge and those that are not prescribed in the constitution and the statutes” or what he said were “so-called unwritten rules.” The judge said the policy is neither in the Constitution nor in Republic Act No. 8557 which is an act establishing the Philippine Judicial Academy (PHILJA), defining its powers and functions, appropriating funds, and for other purposes. “It is a grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack Read More …

DOLE, PESO to hold Labor Day Job Fair at SM Malls

 Economy
Apr 302014
 
DOLE, PESO to hold Labor Day Job Fair at SM Malls

MANILA, Philippines – Job hunting is undeniably a challenging experience and although technology and social media provide many tools to connect applicants to potential employers, a call for an appointment is not always guaranteed. To address this issue, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) together with the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) will hold the biggest Job Fair of the year on Labor Day, May 1, 2014 at all SM Supermalls nationwide. This event allows jobseekers to explore from various job opportunities, be interviewed by potential employers, and even get hired on the same day. SM Supermalls, being home to over 300, 000 employees, continues to make efforts in providing jobs to the growing Filipino workforce. Coming from a huge success last year in which 2, 400 companies joined and 394, 000 jobs were offered, this year’s Job Fair is expected to be as successful. So this coming Labor Day, be sure not to miss this big opportunity. Ready your resumes, dress to impress, and go to the nearest SM malls near you. For a complete list of the 49 participating malls and drop boxes for the Job Fair, please visit www. smsupermalls.com or www.facebook.com/smsupermalls.

Int'l aid group: Add livelihood assistance in relocation efforts for Yolanda survivors

 General
Apr 302014
 
Int'l aid group: Add livelihood assistance in relocation efforts for Yolanda survivors

Resettlement plans for survivors of typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) will only go to waste if the government does not integrate job opportunities in relocation sites, an international aid agency said in a report. In its study released Tuesday, Oxfam International said livelihood is the survivors’ “top priority,” and this has not been given enough consideration in plans to move 200,000 people away from the coast, now considered “unsafe” areas. Many of these people are “fisherfolk, laborers, and vendors,” it added. “The government has committed to the principle of ‘building back better,’ but it has yet to prove that through its relocation efforts,” said Justin Morgan, Oxfam’s country director in the Philippines. “Relocation is not only about houses; it’s about jobs, safety, transport. These cannot be afterthoughts.” Earning a living over safety The report, titled “The Right Move? Ensuring durable relocation after typhoon Haiyan,” is a result of interviews and focus groups conducted with 453 individuals across Eastern Samar, Leyte, and Cebu, where the group extended help post-Yolanda.  Forty-nine percent of those surveyed said earning a living “through their current or a new job” is “the most important” factor in resettlement, only next to safety (32 percent). Relocation sites, Oxfam added, were as far as 15 kilometers from the survivors’ current homes, which prompted some “not to relocate because transport costs were too expensive from their new homes back to the coast where they work.” Only seven percent of people were consulted or informed about the relocation plans by a government official, Read More …

3 Filipinos feared to have MERS

 News
Apr 292014
 
3 Filipinos feared to have MERS

FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Local authorities are still validating reports three more overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the Middle East had contracted the dreaded Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV). “Our officials are constantly coordinating with health authorities there to determine and monitor the condition of our OFWs,” said administrator Carmelita Dimzon of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa) in a media forum on Tuesday. A report over the weekend said at least three more Filipino nurses in Saudi Arabia had contracted MERS-CoV. One of them is reportedly in the intensive care unit of a hospital in Riyadh. The three are supposedly among the 14 new MERS-CoV cases in Saudi Arabia, which include seven in Jeddah, four in Riyadh and three in Mecca. Dimzon said the Owwa had intensified its information and health education drives in the Middle East to explain MERS-CoV to OFWs. “For those preparing to leave the Philippines, we have included MERS-CoV health education in our predeparture orientation seminars,” she said. The Department of Health and Philippine Health Insurance Corp., meanwhile, are finalizing a benefit package for PhilHealth members who may be infected with MERS-CoV. Dr. Lyndon Lee Suy, emerging infectious diseases program manager, said PhilHealth, the government’s social health insurance plan, would shoulder the cost of laboratory tests for patients. The laboratory test to determine if a person is infected with MERS-CoV costs P5,000. The patient may also need to be confined in a health facility while awaiting the results. The government has so far spent over Read More …

What’s going on? Cabinet trio tries to sing Obama’s favorite song

 News
Apr 292014
 
What’s going on? Cabinet trio tries to sing Obama’s favorite song

U.S. President Barack Obama, left, and Philippine President Benigno Aquino III, right, toast as they attend a state dinner at Malacanang Palace in Manila, Philippines, Monday, April 28, 2014. AP MANILA, Philippines — What was going on with United States President Barack Obama? Ask him about his first-ever visit to Manila and he’ll probably tell you about one unforgettable night at the Palace when he “jammed” with three Philippine Cabinet members audacious enough to perform live for their VIP guest. All of that happened at last Monday’s state dinner during which there was clearly no shortage of professional performers, the likes of Apl.de.Ap, Leo Valdez, Bituin Escalante, Kuh Ledesma, and the Philippine Madrigal singers. Enter the trio of Secretaries Florencio Abad, Jose Rene Almendras and Rogelio Singson, who belted out their no-holds-barred rendition of Marvin Gaye’s 1971 Motown classic, “What’s Going On?” It’s one of Obama’s favorite songs (reportedly second on his iPod list), a deeply textured tune inspired initially by police brutality against black kids in the US. Anyone among the celebrity singers in attendance could have done justice to Marvin Gaye. But Almendras said it was probably better to let the “non-pros” do it, if only to encourage Obama and his delegation to sing along. “Baka mahiya kumanta kung mga professionals,” he told reporters. And sing along they did throughout the brief performance. Almendras said Susan Rice, Obama’s national security adviser, was so into it that her boss eventually gave her the microphone. “Ang lakas ng boses n’ya. Read More …

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