KAKAMPI MO ANG BATAS

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:43:59 +0100

Let CHED do its work

BY ATTY. BATAS MAURICIO

LIFE’S INSPIRATIONS: “…But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children---with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts…” (Psalm 103:17-18, the Holy Bible).

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LET CHED DO ITS WORK: Now, there are two branches of government looking into supposed additional miscellaneous charges being made by schools and universities against their students during school opening in June---first the Senate, and second, Malacanang. To me, this is an overkill.

To find out if the miscellaneous charges are legally permissible, the constitution by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) of a committee, headed by its legal counsel, lawyer Julio Vitriolo, is the most appropriate step.

All that has to be done is, study the laws on schools and universities and find out if these laws allow such additional miscellaneous charges, and the Vitriolo committee should be able to establish that. There is no longer any need for the intervention of the Senate and the Office of the Malacanang.

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CONGRATS, ILOCOS SUR REP. RYAN LUIS SINGSON: I congratulate newly-elected Ilocos Sur Rep. Ryan Luis Singson, son of Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis “Chavit” Singson and brother of former Rep. Ronald Singson, for his election in the special congressional elections in the province. Agbiyag kayo, Apo Congressman.

Yet, will please someone clarify if this election, as well as the political exercise in May 2010, already means the “political separation” of the Singsons and their closest political allies in Ilocos Sur, the Baterina Family?

I am asking this question because in the elections May 2010 and May 2011, a Baterina fought the Singsons tooth and nail, indicating, as it were, a fierce battle between the previously-allied families. What happened here?

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SETTING ONE’S SELF ON THINGS ABOVE: Anyone who professes to be a believer and follower of Jesus Christ must struggle to set his whole being on things above, and no longer on earthly things. Anyone who continues to live according to the whims and caprices of this world, even if he professes to be a believer of Jesus, will still reap destruction.

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things,” Colossians 3:1-2 of the Holy Bible says.

“Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry,” verse 5 of Colossians 3 says, and, in its verse 6, a warning is made: “Because of these, the wrath of God is coming upon the disobedient.”

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:42:24 +0100

Criminals getting younger by the day

BY ISMAEL AMIGO

OUR National Hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, must be turning in his grave right now.

He has all the reason to do so because some of the youth he called as "future of the nation" are turning into criminals, no thanks to the Juvenile Justice System Act of 2006.

Criminals are getting younger and younger by the day since the law that exempts minors 15-years old and younger from criminal liability, and allows punishment for those 15 to 18 if proven they acted “with discernment” was passed in 2006.

Why? The law has been taken advantages by some criminal groups or gangs by employing minors to do their bidding, leading to the growing number of crimes committed by juveniles.

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Recently, the Senate said it is planning to suspend implementation of the Juvenile Justice Law, for lack of rehabilitation facilities for youthful offenders.

Sen. Francis Escudero said the Senate shall suspend the law until such time that the necessary rehabilitation centers for these children are established.

Escudero’s amendment of the juvenile justice law shall be discussed when the Senate plenary session starts on May 9.

Escudero said juvenile delinquents cannot be detained in municipal jails alongside hardened criminals as it would mean that authorities can be charged with both administrative and criminal charges.

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But for me, lawmakers should focus on the bill filed by Iloilo City Rep. Jerry Trenas seeking to lower the age of criminal liability from 15 to 12 years of age.

Trenas is alarmed at the growing incidence of crimes committed by minors, many of them recruited by crime syndicates.

Treñas said House Bill 3815 seeks to protect Filipino youth used as “pawns” by criminals.

The bill imposes “criminal penalties upon offenders belonging to a criminal juvenile organization aged 12 and above who acted with discernment, any person involved in any criminal juvenile organization that tolerates any criminal act as part of its authorized activities or initiation (rites), and on parents or guardians of a child commanded, encouraged or allowed to participate in any criminal act.”

Treñas said his bill would also punish persons who encourage youngsters to join gangs, including their parents.

DBM: Government spending picks up in April

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:34:47 +0100

NATIONAL government spending has started to pick up in April, as the utilization of Notice of Cash Allocations (NCA) has improved to 88.9 percent as of April from 82.0 percent as of March, according to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

Government disbursements in April amounted to P112.1 billion, or 8 percent lower than the P121.9 billion spent in April 2010 and 14 percent lower than the program of P130.1 billion. Disbursements in the first four months of the year amounted to P461.4 billion, lower by P60.5 billion or 11.6 percent compared to P521.9 billion year-on-year.

The lower disbursements recorded was on account of lower interest payments by P22.4 billion due to better interest and exchange rates this year; lower capital outlay due to lower account payables; and lower maintenance spending as there were non-recurring expenditures last year.

Nonetheless, Budget and Management Secretary Florencio B. Abad pressed departments and agencies, especially those with infrastructure projects, to fulfil their catch-up plans.

“Agencies have a lot of catching up to do. I wish to remind them of President Aquino’s directive to accelerate program and project implementation,” he said.

He also said that the President has called for a Mid-Year Budget Execution Assessment in July to ensure that budget execution and project implementation proceed according to schedule.

“Nonetheless, we now see signs of improvement. Based on the catch-up plans of the agencies, as well as the allotments and cash allocations that we released recently, we expect spending to further pick up in the next few months,” he said, noting that DBM has already released P1.09 trillion in allotments, or 66.3 percent of this year’s P1.645-trillion budget.

Abad said that the Department of Public Works and Highways has already conducted a review of their cost assumptions; and they should have already bidded-out and awarded over 300 projects, which cost P50 million or more each, by June 2011.

On infrastructure spending, the year-on-year decrease—worth P39.2 billion in January to April—can be attributed to non-recurring accounts payables last year. Project implementation delay can also be attributed to the influx of requests from district and regional offices for realignments of more than 40 percent of the line-item projects already released.

Meanwhile, he said the Social Welfare department’s conditional cash transfer program is proceeding faster than programmed, with 1.47 million household-beneficiaries—or 63 percent of the target of 2.34-million this year—already starting to receive their cash grants.

In January to April, year-on-year under-spending on maintenance and other operating expenditures amounted to P15.9 billion. Non-recurring items last year include election-related activities and assistance to farmers and fisherfolk affected by the dry spell.

Abad also said DBM will no longer allow agencies to propose huge lump-sum for 2012; instead, they should flesh-out their budgets into specific programs and projects. He said it usually takes agencies up to mid-year to submit special budget requests for the release of such funds.

So far this year, a number of lump-sum funds for infrastructure have yet to be released as of April 30: 1) Department of Agriculture – Farm-to-Market Road projects (P2.5 billion); 2) Military and Police Modernization Programs (P7 billion); 3) Department of Education – Basic Educational Facilities Fund of (P11.3 billion); 4) Department of Health – Health Facilities Enhancement Program (P7.1 billion); 5) DPWH Flood Control and Drainage Projects (P1.6 billion); and 6) Infrastructure Support Fund for Public-Private Partnerships (P12.5 billion).

CEB boosts domestic tourism with additional flights, 33% more seats

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:34:15 +0100

THE Philippines’ largest national flag carrier, Cebu Pacific (CEB) will increase domestic flights in the 4th quarter of 2011, making available 33% more seats compared to the same period last year.

CEB will take delivery of 3 more brand-new Airbus A320 aircraft in October, allowing the airline to offer the lowest possible fares in the market and mount more domestic flights.

“This is in line with CEB’s continued commitment to promote tourism and economy in the destinations it flies to. Foreign and local travelers can book CEB’s lowest fares to explore the Philippines’ top beaches and diving sites, and attend the country’s most popular fiestas,” said CEB VP for Marketing and Distribution Candice Iyog.

“We currently already offer the most flights and the lowest fares to Cebu and Davao, two key cities in the Visayas and Mindanao, compared to any other airline. Tourists will have faster, easier access to the most extensive route network in the country,” she added.

With this flight increases, CEB will also continue to have the most flights to popular tourist destinations such as Boracay, Coron, Dumaguete and Cagayan de Oro. CEB will increase flight frequencies in the following routes:

*Effective 1 October 2011

Manila-Butuan-Manila (2x to 3x daily)

Manila-General Santos-Manila (2x to 3x daily)

Manila-Tacloban-Manila (4x to 5x daily)

Manila-Davao-Manila (from 45x to 49x weekly)

*Effective 7 October 2011

Manila-Davao-Manila (7x to 8x daily)

Manila-Dumaguete-Manila (2x to 3x daily)

Manila-Roxas-Manila (7x to 12x weekly)

Cebu-Butuan-Cebu (7x to 11x weekly)

Manila-Boracay (Caticlan)-Manila (86x to 91x weekly)

Cebu-Dumaguete-Cebu (3x to 7x weekly)

Cebu-Pagadian-Cebu (4x to 7x weekly)

Additional Seats (from ATR 72-500 to Airbus A319)

Cebu-Ozamiz-Cebu (Daily)

Manila-Tuguegarao-Manila (Daily)

*Effective 14 October 2011

Manila-Cagayan de Oro-Manila (6x to 7x daily)

Cebu-Davao-Cebu (24x to 28x weekly)

Manila-Cebu-Manila (80x to 87x weekly)

Manila-Coron (Busuanga)-Manila (2x to 3x daily)

Manila-Boracay (Caticlan)-Manila (13x to 14x daily)

Manila-Naga-Manila (3x to 4x daily)

Additional Seats (from ATR 72-500 to Airbus A319)

Cebu-Bacolod-Cebu (Daily)

Cebu-Cagayan de Oro-Cebu (Daily)

Cebu-Iloilo-Cebu (Daily)

Cebu-Tacloban-Cebu (Daily)

For CEB booking and inquiries, guests can visit www.cebupacificair.com or http://funtours.cebupacificair.com or call (02) 7020-888 or (032) 230-8888. The latest seat sales can also be found on cebupacificair on Twitter and Facebook Fan Page.

Gov't posts highest recorded monthly fiscal surplus in 25 years

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:33:49 +0100

“WE HAVE strived to increase tax collections without imposing new taxes and we have been very aggressive in eliminating wasteful spending,” Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said, in response to the Government’s highest monthly fiscal surplus in 25 years.

The national government recorded a surplus of P26.258 billion for the month of April, which brings its fiscal position for the first four months of the year to a surplus of P61 million.

“According to our economic managers, this strong fiscal performance was a result of an 18.22 percent increase in revenue collections for the first four months to P461.4 billion, while our expenditures for the same period decreased by 11.6 percent to P461.35 billion,” Lacierda added.

The reduction in expenditures was in large part due to a 17.98 percent reduction in interest payments, as reported earlier.

The P22.4 billion reduction in interest payments is attributable to the Department of Finance’s Liability Management Program, which managed to stretch maturities on loans to as long as 25 years.

It is worthy to note that the P22.4 billion in savings from interest payments is enough to fund the entire CCT program for the year, which was given an allocation of P21 billion in the 2011 budget.

According to Lacierda, the primary surplus of Php .061 billion, as opposed to a deficit of P131.8 billion posted April 2010, “is a clear sign that we are being very careful in managing the people’s money.”

NEDA sees PHL economy to grow 5.8% in Q1

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:33:28 +0100

THE National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) has said the Philippine economy is likely to grow 4.8 percent to 5.8 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to last year.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Cayetano Paderanga told reporters that the agriculture and services sectors contributed to the growth in the January-March 2011 quarter.

In the first quarter of 2010, the economy grew by 7.3 percent.

The government expects the economy, as measured by the gross domestic product (GDP), to grow between 7 percent and 8 percent this year and up to 2016. GDP refers to the total value of final goods and services produced in a country in a year.

Paderanga, however, said that the economic managers may review the country's economic target "after the end of the second quarter to see how we are doing."

"The (yearly) GDP targets may be easier to reach starting in 2012 since the effect of last year's elections spending would not be there," Paderanga added.

The National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) said that the economy grew by 7.6 percent last year, a slight upward revision from an earlier announced 7.3 percent.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank earlier projected that GDP may grow 5 percent this year.

At the same time, Paderanga said inflation is still relatively low although it moved to the higher end of the range.

"It's still within target," he said.

The National Statistics Office (NSO) reported that inflation in the first four months of 2011 reached 4.2 percent or within the government's projection of between 3 percent and 5 percent this year.

Vhong Navarro renews pact with ABS-CBN for 3 years

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:30:39 +0100

COMEDIAN Vhong Navarro will stay a "Kapamilya" for three more years.

This after the comedian, who started as a member of all-male dance group Streeboys, signed a fresh 3-year contract with ABS-CBN.

The contract signing was attended by top ABS-CBN executives.

He has been a Kapamilya talent for more than a decade now.

Navarro said he is thankful for the trust and opportunity given by the company. The “Showtime” host vowed to work harder in his upcoming projects.

The comedian-actor also said he wishes to do a television project with his fellow “Kanto Boys” members John Lloyd Cruz, Luis Manzano and Billy Crawford. Their current individual schedules, however, will not allow them to collaborate.

The shooting of their movie is currently underway. Navarro might also do either a soap opera or a sitcom.

Tiger sinks to new low

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:27:57 +0100

Tiger Woods continued to slip the golf’s world rankings from eighth down to 12th position, the first time he has been outside the world top 10 since winning the Masters in 1997.

His high profile infidelity that led to a costly divorce from his wife has devastated him mentally. Followed by a long lay-off after the incident, has affected his game.

Since his comeback, he has yet to regain his luster performance and the lost glory where he was once the top player and the dominant athlete of the game.

The top 10: Lee Westwood (England) , Luke Donald (England); Martin Kaymer (Germany) ; Phil Mickelson (US) ; Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland) ; Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) [7.] Charl Schwartzel (South Africa); Steve Stricker (US) ; Paul Casey (England) ; Matt Kuchar (US).

Taguig boosts anti-rabies campaign

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:16:47 +0100

TAGUIG City Mayor Lani Cayetano has ordered the concerned local departments to step up the campaign against rabies through mass vaccination of pet dogs.

“Rabies is a grave concern for pets, their owners and the public in general. By having their pets vaccinated, they not only protect them from rabies but also contribute in preventing the spread of rabies-related incidents,” Cayetano said.

For this year, the mayor said, a six-man team from the City Agriculture Office is going to conduct anti rabies vaccination in the city's 28 barangays.

Cayetano added that the campaign is especially important this summer since lots of children become potential victims of rabies.

“Since there are no classes and it is summer, children are often playing outside their homes and are thus at risk to rabies because of the dogs around them. Parents will only have peace of mind if they know that their children are protected,“ she said.

Emelita Solis, chief of City Agricultural Office (CAO), reported that some 5,295 dogs and cats have already been vaccinated between January and March this year.

Solis said the city government is targeting to vaccinate 24,000 dogs for this year for free.

Solis appealed to the residents to be responsible pet owners and to help out in the city’s campaign by voluntarily bringing in their dogs and other pets so they may be given the anti-rabies shots.

“If they cannot bring their pets on designated dates for vaccination, they can go directly to the CAO at the City Hall to have their pets vaccinated,” she said.

For his part, Dr. Isaias Ramos, City Health Office officer-in-charge, advised the public to immediately seek medical help if they get bitten by a dog or even a cat for proper treatment.

QC enrols 200 pregnant women to free health insurance

Tue, 31 May 2011 06:16:23 +0100

TO IMPROVE the health condition of pregnant women in Quezon City, the QC government has given free health insurance coverage through the Philhealth, to some 200 pregnant women in two barangays in the city.

The distribution of QC-sponsored Philhealth cards is part of the drive of QC to watch over the health of expectant mothers, especially the indigent ones.

With the number of women dying of childbirth unabated, the insurance serves as an intervention to maternal deaths by providing health benfits such as maternal health care package which includes free pre- and postnatal check-ups, birth planning seminars, and free child delivery in public and accredited private hospitals.

As indicated in the city’s poverty profile, about 1.8 percent of women in QC die each year from childbirth or in other pregnancy-related causes. This prompted the city government to launch efforts to strengthen the delivery of maternal health care services, like compliance to four pre-natal visits, provision of tetanus toxoid, laboratory screening, micronutrient supplementation, nutrition assessment, and breastfeeding education.

Of the 200 beneficiaries, 101 indigent pregnant women were from Barangay Pansol and 97 others, from Barangay Tatalon.

archives

KAKAMPI MO ANG BATAS

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

DBM: Government spending picks up in April

CEB boosts domestic tourism with additional flights, 33% more seats

Gov't posts highest recorded monthly fiscal surplus in 25 years

NEDA sees PHL economy to grow 5.8% in Q1

Vhong Navarro renews pact with ABS-CBN for 3 years

Tiger sinks to new low

Taguig boosts anti-rabies campaign

QC enrols 200 pregnant women to free health insurance