PH warship test fires guns off Zambales; BRP Ramon Alcaraz due Friday

 News
Jul 312013
 
PH warship test fires guns off Zambales; BRP Ramon Alcaraz due Friday

By Frances MangosingINQUIRER.net 3:02 pm | Wednesday, July 31st, 2013 PH’S 2ND WARSHIP The BRP Ramon Alcaraz. PHOTO FROM TWITTER ACCOUNT OF PHILIPPINE EMBASSY IN US MANILA, Philippines – The country’s warship, BRP Gregorio del Pilar, successfully test fired its guns off Zambales last Monday, a navy official said Wednesday. The naval drill was held as the Navy prepares to welcome the arrival in the Philippines of BRP Gregorio del Pilar’s sister ship, BRP Ramon Alcaraz. Navy spokesman Lieutenant Commander Gregory Fabic told reporters that the gunnery test of its Oto Melara 76mm main gun hit a floating “killer tomato” located two nautical miles away within five rounds. He added that BRP Gregorio del Pilar is near the Subic area to welcome the country’s second warship, BRP Ramon Alcaraz, which is due to arrive on August 2. Fabic, however, clarified that the test firing was not a show of force against China. The Panatag Shoal (Scarborough Shoal), a disputed territory between China and Philippines, is located 124 nautical miles west of Zambales. He described the guns, the primary weapon of del Pilar, as “excellent.” The Oto Melara 76mm gun has a range of up to 10 nautical miles, and can fire up to 80 rounds in 60 seconds. 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 Read More …

‘Pinay’: Cat found on freighter from Philippines to LA

 News
Jul 302013
 
‘Pinay’: Cat found on freighter from Philippines to LA

Associated Press 5:57 am | Wednesday, July 31st, 2013 This undated photo provided by the County of Los Angeles Department of Animal Care and Control shows a 4-year-old cat that stowed away in a container ship headed from Manila, Philippines, to Los Angeles. The cat, named “Pinay” by staff, is described as a domestic short-haired, orange-and-white female. She is gaining weight and getting stronger after the trip without food or water left her near death. AP PHOTO/COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES DEPARTMENT OF ANIMAL CARE AND CONTROL LOS ANGELES—A 4-year-old cat that stowed away in a container ship headed from Manila, Philippines, to Los Angeles is gaining weight and getting stronger after the trip without food or water left it near death. Los Angeles County animal control director Marcia Mayeda said the orange-and-white female cat was weak and frail after the 7,300-mile  (11,745-kilometer) trip. But after two weeks of treatments, the feline is in fair condition. Hospital staff named the cat Pinay, a common name for a female Filipino. The cat has cleared quarantine but needs to be adopted into a calm home because she is still skittish. Potential adopters can e-mail daccevents@animalcare.lacounty.gov. A year ago, a kitten named Ni Hao survived a freighter trip from China and was placed in a home. 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, Read More …

Widening gap between rural, urban wages explained

 Economy
Jul 302013
 
Widening gap between rural, urban wages explained

MANILA, Philippines – Experts on political economy have warned that the wide disparity in rural and urban wages remained a roadblock to achieving inclusive, broad-based development, despite the country’s 7.8 percent growth in first quarter. This is the essence of the first in a series of roundtable discussions organized by the Angara Centre for Law and Economics, dubbed Taking the Philippine Economy to the Next Level: Promoting Inclusive Regional Development, which was held yesterday at Malcolm Hall, College of Law, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City. The event was topbilled by internationally-recognized political economist, Dr John C Nye, Frederic Bastiat chairman in Political Economy at the Mercatus Center, George Mason University, and research director at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow. Dr Nye observed that the Philippines’ overall ratio of rural-urban wage gap at 67 percent remained constant over the last decade. There are higher ratios when skilled and unskilled workers are considered separately. Areas with a high share of agriculture have the lowest relative wages, the study revealed. There is a pressing need to even out the rural-urban wage gap, which calls on the Aquino administration to take a hard look at differences in labor policies between commercial industries and rural labor. The paper pointed out that urban workers actually earn slightly less in real terms than rural workers when relative prices are considered. Despite the higher cost of living in urban centers, there are compensating factors that can explain why people flock to already-congested cities. These are Read More …

Forum Energy losses widen

 Economy
Jul 302013
 
Forum Energy losses widen

MANILA, Philippines – Forum Energy Plc., a British oil and gas exploration company with focus on the Philippines, said its net loss widened to $2.75 million in the first half of the year, from $1.67 million recorded in the same period in 2012. Forum Energy, which is 60.49-percent owned by corporate taipan Manuel V. Pangilinan’s Philex Petroleum Corp., reported higher revenues during the period at $2.24 million, up from $1.35 million a year ago. “This increased revenue reflected the fact that the Galoc field operated normally throughout the period whereas it did not operate for the first four months of 2012 whilst the facilities were being refurbished,” Forum Energy said. The temporary closure of the Galoc oil field in Palawan in the early part of 2012 resulted in a decrease in production to 5,410 barrels of oil per day from 6,637 bopd in 2011, data from the company showed. Forum Energy said it is still unable to commence drilling in its main project, Service Contract 72 in the Sampaguita oil field in the disputed Recto Bank in the West  Philippine Sea. Forum Energy noted that it has been granted an extension to August 2015 to complete the second sub-phase obligations of drilling wells on SC 72. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The Department of Energy has extended the company’s work program by two years to August 2015 from the original deadline of August 2013 to allow it to complete its obligations under the service contract. Forum Read More …

House to probe sexual exploitation of OFWs by DFA, labor execs

 News
Jul 292013
 
House to probe sexual exploitation of OFWs by DFA, labor execs

By Karen BoncocanINQUIRER.net 10:38 am | Tuesday, July 30th, 2013 Akbayan Rep. Walden Bello MANILA, Philippines — After securing the chairmanship for the committee on overseas workers affairs at the House of Representatives, Akbayan’s Walden Bello on Tuesday said that he would seek the investigation of the alleged sexual exploitation cases on distressed female Filipino workers in the Middle East. In a phone interview with INQUIRER.net, Bello said that their group had not received word from both the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on their separate inquiries into the alleged involvement of Philippine Embassy and labor officials in the scandal. “We have not been appraised of developments in the investigation. Although we have constantly asked for updates, we have not received information other than being told that they are already investigating,” he said. Bello exposed the sexual exploitation cases months ago, prompting the DFA and the DOLE to ask the officials named in these cases to return to the Philippines for an investigation. But it was not just the “slow pace” of the two departments’ investigation which prompted the Akbayan lawmaker to launch a congressional inquiry. “We had planned this ever since. This was planned irrespective of their investigation. We said that once Congress opens, we will file a resolution whereby the House would conduct and inquiry. We filed the resolution on July 1 and yesterday I was appointed chairman of the Overseas Workers Affairs Committee,” he said. “The first order of Read More …

PHL says Muslim veil directive only a request

 Entertainment
Jul 292013
 

MANILA (AFP) – A Philippine government directive for female Muslim teachers to take off their face veils in class is not mandatory nor meant to curtail religious rights, the education minister said Thursday. Education Secretary Armin Luistro issued guidelines last week on wearing the “niqab” in schools, intended mainly for the southern Philippines, where most […]

2 women on way to Clark seized in Hong Kong for drug smuggling

 News
Jul 292013
 
2 women on way to Clark seized in Hong Kong for drug smuggling

Agence France-Presse 4:59 pm | Monday, July 29th, 2013 INQUIRER.net file photo HONG KONG — Hong Kong authorities said Monday they had arrested two women in possession of more than a dozen kilograms of crystal methamphetamine at the city’s airport. The women, sisters aged 27 and 31, were seized Sunday at Chek Lap Kok airport on their way to Clark in the Philippines. Airport authorities discovered they were carrying 14.5 kilograms (32 pounds) of “ice”, according to a customs official, who withheld their nationality. The drugs, worth HK$10.9 million ($1.4 million), were found concealed inside false compartments of three suitcases carrying men’s clothing, Customs Drug Investigation head Hui Wai-ming told reporters. “The weight of the suitcase was a bit abnormal,” Hui said, adding that the drugs could have been sold for more than two times the Hong Kong price in the Philippines. Crystal methamphetamine creates a feeling of euphoria and increased confidence but hallucinations and paranoia are potential side-effects. It has become a drug of choice for young addicts in Asia. Under Hong Kong law, manufacturing and trafficking dangerous drugs carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a fine of five million Hong Kong dollars. 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: Crime , Drug Smuggling , Global Nation , Read More …

Industry group pushes for lower power cost

 Economy
Jul 272013
 
Industry group pushes for lower power cost

MANILA, Philippines – A group of local industry supporters have asked the government to address the high power cost in the Philippines, noting that it is the highest in Asia. “The cost of power, the highest in Asia, makes the Philippines uncompetitive, not only in manufacturing but also in all areas of the economy,” said the Philippine Employer-Labor Social Partnership, Inc. (PELSPI) in a position paper submitted to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA). The group, which includes University of the Philippines labor professor Rene Ofreneo, said the high cost of power in the Philippines is threatening the growth potential of the booming call center sector. “It is even threatening the viability of the booming call center/BPO sector.  In the electronics industry and other manufacturing industries, power accounts for one third of the total cost of production compared to less than 10 percent for payrolls,” the group said. The group noted that the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 failed to lower power cost and improve power service. It urged the government to review the EPIRA and propose the necessary amendments. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “A review and overhaul of the EPIRA program is urgent,” it said. The group expressed support to the government’s efforts to reengineer a revival of Philippine manufacturing. “With a stagnating industrial and agricultural base, the Philippines, the second most industrially-developed in Asia in the 1960s, has been left behind by our East and Southeast Asian neighbors,” it said. Read More …

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