When life becomes one big stress

 News
Jul 292013
 
When life becomes one big stress

Teen to Teen By Elizabeth Horner 5:59 am | Tuesday, July 30th, 2013 High school can be specially trying. For me, I went from being a little girl with big dreams of college—an Ivy League education, to be exact—to a teenager who was expected to make those dreams become real. My anxiety was sky high over failing at the task. I was in calculus, advanced English 12, advanced anatomy, ACP chemistry, Spanish IV, and ACP psychology.  Sure I graduated later that same year with a final GPA of 5.11 in the scale of 4.0, but I remember the nights I stayed awake, looking at where the moon should be visible from my window,  and worried. Every big paper I turned in didn’t seem to meet my standards, and I pictured it, among a pile on my teacher’s desk, waiting for red ink to fall on it. My tests, especially the ones for chemistry class, haunted me like ghosts. It didn’t matter if I read the chapters in the textbook twice over, or if I went in to see the teacher at lunch with my innumerable questions; I never seemed prepared for the tests. And, in waiting to get my test back, I put myself through some self-imposed mental torture. I’m sure this sounds like the dramatic ramblings of someone young and hormone imbalanced. Maybe it is, but so long as the problems felt real and pressing, with direct lines tying themselves to my future, then they were real problems in need of Read More …

Globe, French firm tie up for UK service

 Economy
Jul 222013
 
Globe, French firm tie up for UK service

MANILA, Philippines – Ayala-led Globe Telecom Inc. has tied up with French-owned Transatel to provide mobile telephony services to Filipinos based or visiting the United Kingdom. Globe corporate information officer Marisalve Ciocson-Co informed the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) that the partnership agreement between Globe’s UK Globetel Limited and Transatel of France last July 20. Ciocson-Co said both companies agreed to provide mobile telephony services such as voice calls, short messaging system (SMS), multimedia messaging system (MMS), load top-up, and mobile data. She said the services would be offered by UK Globetel to Filipinos based or visiting the UK through the French firm’s platform. “This new offering is consistent with Globe’s thrust to continue providing Filipinos overseas with innovative and value for money services that allows constant communication ties with family and friends,” she stressed. Earlier, Globe partnered with UK-based iVitta to strengthen its foothold in the seafarer market. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The company will offer an exclusive SIM card that will provide Filipino seafarers the lowest call and text rates when communicating with their families and loved ones in the Philippines. The Globe Seafarer SIM allows Filipino mariners from anywhere in the world to regularly keep in touch with their loved ones back home at affordable call and text rates without the need for expensive satellite equipment connections using two numbers in one SIM – an international mobile number and a local Globe mobile number. Using their international mobile number, seafarers can call the Read More …

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 …

Bank of Commerce sale falls apart

 Economy
Jun 222013
 
Bank of Commerce sale falls apart

MANILA, Philippines – Diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp.’s (SMC) plan to unload subsidiary Bank of Commerce fell through after CIMB Group Holdings walked away from the supposed P12.2 billion transaction. In a disclosure to the Malaysian Stock Exchange over the weekend, CIMB said the parties failed to reach an agreement after extending negotiations when the sale and purchase agreement (SPA) lapsed. “As such, the parties will not proceed with the proposed acquisition, CIMB said. Surces said land issues were one of the factors blamed for the failed deal.  Under the Philippine Constitution, foreigners are barred from owning land in the country.       CIMB said the SPAs with sellers San Miguel Properties Inc., SMC Retirement Plan and Q-Tech Alliance Holdings Inc. lapsed in December while the deal with minority shareholders expired in February. In 2012, CIMB agreed to buy SMC’s 60-percent stake in BoC for P12.2 billion. SMC currently owns 84 percent of the mid-sized lender. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1  Regulators Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and Bank Negara Malaysia had already approved the deal, which would have allowed CIMB to gain a foothold in the Philippines’ banking sector while giving SMC additional cash for its diversification projects. Early this month, SMC said the transaction would push through in July. CIMB is the second largest bank in Malaysia with presence in eight of 10 ASEAN nations (Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia, Brunei, Vietnam and Myanmar). It also has market presence in China, Hong Kong, Bahrain, India, Sri Lanka, Read More …

US, Canada, UK warn vs travel to Mindanao

 News
May 302013
 
US, Canada, UK warn vs travel to Mindanao

By Tarra Quismundo and Michael Lim UbacPhilippine Daily Inquirer 9:51 pm | Thursday, May 30th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—Three more countries have issued travel advisories against Mindanao amid the United States’ warning of a “credible kidnap threat” in the Zamboanga Peninsula. This developed as the Philippines said there was “no specific threat” in the area based on monitoring of law enforcement and security officials. In a Palace briefing Thursday, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the government “respects the prerogative of any country to issue any precautionary measures that they feel their citizens must take while here in our country.” “In fact, when it comes to our citizens abroad, [other countries] also respect our prerogative to issue this kind of advisory to our countrymen [stationed overseas],” said Valte. She cited the recent terrorist attack in Boston—which killed three people and injured 264 others—where the Philippine government issued a similar message to Filipino citizens who may be in the area. In its travel advisory on Wednesday, the US state department cited a report about the resurgence of kidnapping groups, particularly in Zamboanga, that were targeting foreigners. On Thursday, Australia advised its nationals against traveling to parts of Mindanao, particularly Zamboanga and Sulu, citing a similar warning that the United States had issued its citizens. “We continue to strongly advise you not to travel to central and western Mindanao, including the Zamboanga Peninsula and Sulu Archipelago, due to the very high threat of terrorist attack, kidnapping, violent crime and violent clashes between armed Read More …

Heed election bans, UK advises nationals in PHL as polls near

 News
Apr 242013
 
Heed election bans, UK advises nationals in PHL as polls near

Avoid large crowds and heed the election bans on firearms and liquor as the May 13 elections draw closer. This was the gist of the advice the United Kingdom on Wednesday gave to its nationals in the Philippines. “The Philippine government has put in place enhanced security measures in the lead up to the May 2013 congressional and local government elections. These include a ban on bearing, carrying or transporting firearms or other deadly weapons. The enhanced measures will remain in place until 13 June 2013,” the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office said in an update to its travel advice for the Philippines. It also noted there will be increased checkpoints run by the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines. UK nationals were likewise advised there will be a liquor ban in place from May 9 to 13. “Keep up to date with local and international developments, and avoid demonstrations or large gatherings of people,” the FCO advised. The FCO also maintained its advice against all travel to Southwest Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago because of “ongoing terrorist activity and clashes between the military and insurgent groups.” The FCO also advised against all but essential travel to the remainder of Mindanao for similar reasons. Some 113,282 British nationals visited the Philippines in 2012, with most visits being trouble-free, the FCO said. — BM, GMA News

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