DAVAO CITY — Resort owners in the Island Garden City of Samal are challenging a new policy by the city government, specifically a provision in the Revised Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance, regarding construction and maintenance of beach jetties on the island’s waterfront.
Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr.: Can’t force China to comply. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Even if a United Nations arbitration tribunal were to rule in its favor on the West Philippine Sea dispute, the Philippines cannot compel China to comply with the ruling, Malacañang said on Thursday. Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said the country’s main purpose in filing the case is to prove that its claim to certain territories in the South China Sea is sanctioned by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos), and not to enforce compliance from China. “The primary objective is to prove that what we claim as part of the West Philippine Sea is based on a prevailing law, and that law is the Unclos,” Coloma said in the briefing. “The primary objective is not to make a country comply,” he said. “It’s not within our power to dictate what they (China) should do. What’s within our power is to protect our national interest,” Coloma told a Palace briefing. Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza earlier said that the Philippines has always believed that China, as a member of the international community of nations, was “legally bound” to accept and implement the ruling of the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (Itlos). The Philippines’ filing of the case drew a sharp rebuke from Chinese officials, which accused the Philippines of seriously damaging the two countries’ relations and shutting the door to negotiations. Beijing, which claims virtually the entire West Philippine Sea, Read More …
(Photo courtesy of Department of Foreign Affairs Republic of the Philippines Facebook page) Visitors to the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco on April 2 were greeted by an unusual sight: all Consulate personnel were attired in blue. At various times during the day, personnel would hold up a sign displaying a fact about autism and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), sharing the information with the Consulate’s transacting public. The Consulate General’s day-long activity, intended to raise awareness about autism and persons with ASD, was one of two activities it undertook to commemorate April 2 as World Autism Awareness Day, which was adopted by the UN in 2007. In partnership with the Autism Hearts Foundation and Bantay Bata 163, the Consulate General also launched an exhibit of paintings done by children with ASD. Consul Reggie Bernabe, representing the Consulate General, joined Judge Betty Buccay of the Autism Hearts Foundation and Ms. Jo Anne Kyle of ABS-CBN Foundation at the ribbon-cutting for the exhibit. “As always, we support the work being done by Autism Hearts Foundation, and thank ABS-CBN Foundation for their active participation in this project,” Consul Bernabe declared. “The Consulate welcomes, as well, this opportunity to help build awareness about autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and what resources are available to our community to diagnose and treat those with the disorder.” “Persons with ASD can be valued and valuable members of our community if we understand how they can contribute,” Judge Buccat added. “Early diagnosis is important, as is the appropriate Read More …
MANILA, Philippines – As part of its campaign to promote energy security, the Department of Energy (DOE) is urging consumers to use fuels and electricity judiciously, especially during the summer months when demand will be high. Some simple household energy-saving tips are posted on the DOE website and www.wattmatters.org.ph. Equally important, the DOE is also encouraging consumers to buy products that carry an energy label. Yellow energy labels are mandatory on household air conditioners (except inverter type), household refrigerators (size range: 5-8 cubic feet), compact fluorescent lamps (self-ballasted), linear fluorescent lamps, circular fluorescent lamps and ballasts. To reduce electricity bills from air conditioning devices, look for a high Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) when buying a new unit. EER refers to the cooling efficiency of the unit. For refrigerators and freezers, the yellow energy guide bears the Energy Efficiency Factor (EEF) of the unit. The higher the energy efficiency rating, the lower the energy consumption. For fluorescent lamps, the energy label indicates the light output in lumens, power consumption, lamp efficacy and average life. More lumens mean more light output. The higher the efficacy rating, the lower the energy consumption. The safety tests, on the other hand, are being administered by the Bureau of Product Standards of the Department of Trade and Industry. In addition, the DOE has established state-of-the-art laboratory facilities for performance testing of television sets, washing machines, refrigerators, and freezers through the assistance of the Asian Development Bank. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1
MANILA, Philippines – Cosco Capital Inc., the investment vehicle of Lucio and Susan Co, posted a strong income and revenue growth last year driven by the grocery business. In a regulatory filing, Cosco Capital said its pro-forma net income hit P5.3 billion, up 83 percent from P2.9 billion a year ago, while pro-forma net income attributable to equityholders of the parent firm surged 120 percent to P3.3 billion from P1.5 billion. “For its first annual reporting, after being transformed in May 2013 into a consumer-focused holding company, Cosco Capital recorded pro-forma total revenues of P77.2 billion in 2013 from P60.7 billion in 2012 or a growth of 27 percent,” the company said. “Revenues of Cosco Capital were principally accounted for by Puregold Price Club Inc.,” the listed holding firm said. Cosco Capital said that for the last seven-month period 2013, the firm recorded a net income of P3.7 billion. Aside from Puregold, the company is also into liquor importation (Premier Wine & Spirits Inc.), commercial real estate, oil storage and oil exploration activities. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Cosco Capital claims to be the country’s leading importer of liquor with exclusive distribution rights for some of the world’s top brands like Cuervo, Jim Beam, Fundador, Absolut Vodka, Johnny Walker, Chivas Regal and Alfonso.
MANILA, Philippines – Despite the continued slowdown of inflation in March, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said it remains vigilant amid risks that could cause an uptick in the rise of commodity prices. “Clearly, while we see inflation falling within the target range this year and next, there are additional challenges to our operating environment this year relative to last year,” BSP Governor Amando M. Tetangco Jr. said in an e-mailed statement. Inflation eased for a second month to 3.9 percent in March on the back of lower price increases for housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels. This puts the three-month average to 4.1 percent, above the midpoint of the central bank’s three to five percent target range. “Inflation has slowed over the last two months. However, the upside risks to inflation that we have mentioned before still remain,” Tetangco said. “In particular, we note potential price pressures that could emanate from increases in power rates, higher food prices and potential volatility in oil prices are still present,” he added. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “The uncertainty as to when supply-side pressures will dissipate also highlights the potential risk of second-round effects,” Tetangco noted. The BSP, mandated to keep prices stable, last month kept key policy rates stable amid inflation expectations seen falling within target. However, monetary authorities hiked banks’ reserve requirement (RR) ratio by one percent age point due to the sustained high domestic liquidity growth seen since July. “[W]e continue to be mindful Read More …
MANILA, Philippines – Manufacturing output growth continued to ease in February compared to the previous month, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said. The PSA’s Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries released yesterday showed manufacturing output as measured by Volume of Production Index (VoPI) grew 1.2 percent in February, slower than the revised five percent growth posted in January. “This can be attributed to the slowdown in production of furniture and fixtures (130.6 percent) and tobacco products (102.6 percent),” the PSA said. The Value of Production Index (VaPI) likewise expanded at a slower rate of 0.9 percent in February compared to the previous month’s revised 4.3 percent. The VaPI’s growth rate in February was brought about by increases posted by the following sectors: tobacco products (102.2 percent), furniture and fixtures (75.9 percent), machinery except electrical (61.3 percent), publishing and printing (53.1 percent), textiles (35.4 percent), fabricated metal products (30.5 percent), wood and wood products (21.6 percent), leather products (15.2 percent), paper and paper products (14.4 percent) and electrical machinery (12.9 percent). The Value of Net Sales Index (VaNSI) posted an annual increment of 15 percent in February, nearly unchanged from the previous month’s revised 15.3 percent. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Fourteen major sectors contributed to the latest VaNSI performance led by chemical products which grew by 66.6 percent. The Volume of Net Sales Index (VoNSI) expanded at a slightly slower pace of 15.4 percent in February from the revised 16.1 percent in the previous month. The Read More …
DETROIT (AP) – Big US recalls by General Motors and Toyota have put the auto industry on a record pace as companies try to avoid bad publicity and punishment from an increasingly aggressive government. On Wednesday, Toyota announced it was recalling nearly 1.8 million vehicles in the US to fix a spate of problems, including air bags that might not inflate. It’s part of a worldwide recall of 6.4 million cars and trucks. So far this year, automakers have recalled about nine million vehicles in the US. If that pace continues, the nation would break the record of 30.8 million recalled vehicles set in 2004. Most of the recalls are from Toyota and General Motors, two automakers that are under government scrutiny and facing bad publicity and allegations that they concealed safety issues. Toyota’s latest recalls were announced before the company even developed specific repairs. They come two weeks after the Justice Department skewered the Japanese automaker for covering up problems that caused unintended acceleration in some cars starting in 2009. Toyota agreed to pay $1.2 billion to settle that case, but federal prosecutors can resurrect a wire fraud charge if the company fails to comply with the terms of the settlement. Toyota’s actions come as rival GM recalls 2.6 million small cars for defective ignition switches the company links to at least 13 deaths. Of those, 2.2 million are in the US. As that crisis unfolded, GM announced recalls of another 3.4 million US vehicles. Business ( Article MRec Read More …
Marian Rivera (MNS Photo) The House of Representatives’ Committee on Women and Gender Equity headed by Rep. Linabelle Ruth Villarica, and the Committee on Social Services led by Rep. Arturo Robes, named actress Marian Rivera as Ambassador for Women and Children with Disability on Monday, during the closing ceremonies of this month’s Women’s Health celebration. “Marami pong salamat sa inyong pagtitiwala sa akin kaya’t buong puso kong tinatanggap ang tungkuling ipinagkaloob ninyo sa akin bilang Ambassador for Women and Children with Disability,” Rivera posted on Instagram as accompanied by a photo of herself wearing a Filipiniana dress and holding her plaque of recognition. “Kabilang ninyo ako sa pag babantay ng karapatan ng kababaihan at kabataang may kapansanan,” she added. The Primetime Queen said that a person with disability should not be judged, noting there are a number of women and children that have successfully overcome their physical disabilities. “I did some research and found out that Jessica Cox, who is armless, is a licensed pilot. And there’s Roselle Ambubuyog, who graduated summa cum laude from Ateneo despite being blind,” Rivera said. Acting executive director of the National Council on Disability Affairs, Carmen Zubiaga, said that they chose Rivera because they believed the roles she had played in the past made her aware of persons with disabilities. “Marian can help if she urges her fellow actors and the public to support the education for children with disabilities. With her popularity, the call will ring to the whole nation,” Zubiaga said. (MNS)
By Elena Johnson There are 52 weeks in a year – why not make at least one of them meat-free? US VegWeek kicks off on April 21! I hope you’ll join me in taking the 7-day VegPledge – for the planet, our health, and animals. When you sign up at USVegWeek.com, you’ll receive a free starter pack loaded with coupons, recipes, and information on the many benefits of veg eating. You can also sign up to receive daily emails during the week – including tips, articles, more recipes, and more coupons! If that’s not enough, this weeklong celebration also features restaurant specials and local events so you can meet other people taking the pledge and try out new vegetarian food together. Check out the map on USVegWeek.com to see what’s happening in your area! Need even more reasons to take the pledge – how about prizes? When you pledge to choose vegetarian foods during US VegWeek, you’ll be automatically entered into a drawing for fabulous prizes from our sponsors! Want more chances to win? Become a recruiter – the top 10 recruiters will also win prizes for encouraging their friends and family to join in the US VegWeek fun. From April 21 – 27 thousands of people, including celebrities and public officials, will be taking the US VegWeek pledge. Will you join us? I look forward to hearing your experiences during US VegWeek and beyond – Tweet your updates, photos, and food adventures to @ElenaEJohnson. About the Author Elena Johnson Read More …