PIA Dispatch - Thursday, December 4, 2008

PGMA to launch Provincial Bus Loading/Unloading station and connecting foot bridges at EDSA-Quezon Avenue junction

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will be the guest of honor at the launching of the Metro Manila Development Authority’s (MMDA) newly- constructed Provincial Bus Loading and Unloading Station and Connecting Foot Bridges at the junction of Epifanio De los Santos (EDSA) and Quezon Avenue (QA) in Quezon City on Friday, Dec. 5.

Joining the President will be MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando, QC Mayor Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte and Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone.

The EDSA-QA loading/unloading station is the 16th station to be constructed along EDSA this year in response to the request of provincial bus operators for the construction of pre-selected loading and unloading stations along EDSA for the convenience of commuters.

Currently, provincial buses are only allowed to load and unload passengers in their respective terminals.

Under the new scheme, passengers of provincial buses disembark at a place along EDSA that is nearest to their destinations, as well as ease the traffic congestion caused by the buses competing for passengers.

The foot bridges also provide greater safety for bus passengers and commuters alike as they will no longer have to cross the street but take the above-ground passageway, far from the rushing vehicular traffic.

Of the 16 provincial bus loading and unloading stations, nine are located on the north-bound lane: Magallanes, Guadalupe Bridge, Boni Serrano, Julia Vargas Avenue (Megamall), Ortigas Avenue, Timog/East Avenue, Quezon Avenue, North Avenue (Trinoma) and Balintawak.

On the south-bound line, seven stations are in West Avenue, Quezon Avenue, Timog/East Avenue, Ortigas Avenue, Ayala Avenue and Taft Avenue.

After the program, the President may take a windshield tour of the other bus stops along EDSA, particularly the Julia Vargas station in front of Megamall.


DPWH assures PGMA that Davao-Sarangani Coastal Road will be completed in July 2009

JOSE ABAD SANTOS, Davao Del Sur – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) assured President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo here today that the Davao Del Sur-Sarangani Coastal Road will be finished and opened to traffic by July 2009.

Public Works Undersecretary Romeo Momo issued the assurance when he briefed the President on the status of Glan-Sarangani-Jose Abad Santos, Davao Del Sur Coastal Road Project (Meybio, Jose Abad Santos-Glan boundary section) in Barangay Balangonan here.

Welcoming the President upon her arrival in this remote barangay were Jose Abad Santos Mayor Alex Wangkay, Davao Del Sur 2nd District Rep. Franklin Bautista, Glan, Sarangani Mayor Enrique Yap Jr., and other officials from nearby municipalities.

Momo assured the President that once the road section along Barangays Tabayon, Kalbay, Butalan and Camalian are cleared, the DPWH will immediately start the concreting of the coastal road.

“Hopefully, by July 2009, Madam President, the road project will be completed,” Momo told the President, adding that all equipments and materials for the concreting and improvement of the road project are already in place.

Just hours after her arrival from a three-day visit to Hong Kong, the President came to this fifth-class municipality to personally inspect her priority infrastructure projects in the provinces of Sarangani and Davao Del Sur.

The road project is part of President Arroyo’s effort to connect the two provinces to boost their economic progress and agricultural development.

The completion of the road project is expected to hasten and ease the transportation of goods and agricultural products coming from the interior areas to the agro-industrial center in booming General Santos City.

Some 57,000 residents of the 16 remote barangays of this town will directly benefit from the project.


PGMA plays Santa to thousands of indigent Sarangani residents

SARANGANI -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo brought holiday cheers today to thousands of residents here by leading the distribution of various livelihood, farm production inputs, irrigation wells and food packs for indigent residents.

After inspecting a vital road network in Balangonan, Jose Abad Santos in Davao del Sur, the President proceeded to the provincial capitol gym here to personally hand over the livelihood assistance to the farmers in line with the government’s agricultural support program.

The livelihood assistance includes 1,000 bags of hybrid white corn seeds, 280 bags of open-pollinated variety of white corn seeds worth P182,000 and 200 packs of assorted vegetable seeds worth P70,000.

The President also distributed two white shallow tube wells worth P100,000 per set to the Samahang Nayon Multipurpose Cooperative and to the Tocawal Growers Association.

Sarangani Gov. Miguel Rene Dominguez expressed his gratitude over the President’s taking time to lead the gift-giving to the indigents.

“Isa pong malaking karangalan para sa atin ang mabisita ng Pangulo at mapalad na tayo ay pinaka-una na pinuntahan ng Pangulo bilang bahagi ng kanyang Christmas sorties,” Dominguez said.

The Chief Executive also gave 698 elderly residents P500 each as an early Christmas treat through the President’s “Katas ng VAT: Tulong para kay Lolo at Lola Project."

“Malaking tulong ito sa amin. Kaya lubos kaming nagpapasalamat kay Pangulong Macapagal-Arroyo,” Miguel Ovidoza, 95 years old and a resident of Anabel municipality.

Old and young alike trooped to the gymnasium to receive their share of the Pamaskong Handog gift packs which the President personally distributed to them.

The beneficiaries thanked the President for the packs of goodies which they said are enough to let their families, especially the children, feel the joy of the holiday season.

Conchita Corpuz, a 46-years-old housewife with four children, said “Ito ang unang pagkakataon ko at ng aking pamilya na nakatanggap ng regalo mula kay Presidente Arroyo. Sana tuwing Pasko may pamasko kami galing sa kanya.”

The President also visited the dental and medical mission being conducted by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) under the Peoples Government Mobile Action (PGMA) and “Serbisyo Muna” program.


Govt employees to receive P10,000 cash gift

MANILA, Dec. 4 (PNA) – Government employees will receive P10,000 as cash gift for this year, Department of Budget and Management Secretary Rolando Andaya announced Thursday.

Andaya, in his speech before the Philippine Government Employees Association National Assembly, said of the P10,000 cash gift, P7,000 will be shouldered by the national government while the remaining P3,000 will come from agency savings.

”I have been told that practically, all national government agencies have a reservoir of savings it can dip into so the P10,000 is more or less assured,” Andaya said.

The budget secretary said temporary employees, including contractuals and casual employees, will also enjoy the bonus.

Andaya, however, did not mention the exact date of the release of the bonus but noted that an executive order will soon be signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
The government will spend P11 billion for the cash gift, he said. (PNA)


RP starts observance of National Human Rights Consciousness Week

Tacloban City -- Pursuant to Republic Act 9201, the National Human Rights Week starts today and will culminate on December 10 which is the International Human Rights Day that commemorates the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The Commission on Human Rights spearheads this year's celebration with the activities revolving around the theme: "Dangal at Katarungan Para sa Ating Lahat" (Dignity and Justice for All of Us).

As this year is the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a year-long campaign has been conducted by the UN system, providing an opportunity to mobilize the who of the United Nations and the whole world to evaluate progress in respecting the promotion of human rights.

The UN slogan for this campaign "Dignity and Justice for All of Us," reinforces the vision of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a commitment to universal dignity and justice.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the first international recognition that all human beings have fundamental rights and freedoms, which continues to be a relevant document today.

To commemorate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the Philippines, the Commission on Human Rights organized a 60-day celebration which was launched on October 10 at the Quadrangle of the CHR Office at Diliman, Quezon City.

All State institutions and organizations have been enjoined to actively participate in the 60-day commemoration of the UDHR. They were directed to use the 60 days to mobilize their networks, and to focus their efforts on helping people everywhere to attain a high level of awareness of their human rights.

Particular attention have been paid by each State institution on its plan of action in response to new ethical and social challenges linked to human rights within the context of each organization's mandates and the UN motto. State institutions were encouraged to take the lead in launching an awareness campaign about certain rights enshrined in the UDHR, particularly those that are directly connected to their respective mandates, such as the right to health in relation to the mandate of the Department of Health.

The Department of Interior and Local Government has issued Memorandum Circular 2008-177 enjoining provincial governors, city and municipal mayors to undertake related activities during the National Human Rights Consciousness Week in order to generate greater public interest on and better understanding of human rights. (PIA 8)


RP to vigorously pursue family welfare programs

Iloilo City -- The country remains steadfast in pursuing the implementation of the National Decade Plan for Filipino Family or NDPFF.

This was disclosed by Secretary Esperanza I. Cabral of the Department of Social Welfare and Development during the 3rd East Asian Ministerial Forum on Families (EAMFF) held in Bali, Indonesia where she reported on the government's efforts to protect the Filipino family from the global economic recession.

According to the DSWD press report, the NDPFF contains various family-oriented family programs which are being implemented with the support of local government units, non-government organizations and other government agencies at the national and local levels.

The programs outlined in the Decade Plan are aimed to achieve ten goals by the year 2015. These goals are to strengthen family relationships and values; improve family access to goods, services and infrastructure; expand financial resources of poor families; and empower families for nation-building.

The other goals are to develop family-friendly environment; coordinate and provide effective synergy for various institutions serving the family; enhance institutional capabilities; strengthen policy and research foundations of service to the family; and mobilize additional resources for services to the family.

Secretary Cabral told the participants to the 3rd EAMFF that the country has embarked on the conditional cash transfer program dubbed Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) which provides cash grants to poor families. The 4Ps promotes human capacity development among poor families especially children in order to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty; and encourages parents participation in the proper development of their children.

She also highlighted the National Household Targeting System (NHTS) as a pioneering project of the country to be managed by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). The NHTS is an efficient and effective system in the identification of poor families who are in need of government assistance, Secretary Cabral disclosed.

Secretary Cabral added that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo created the National Social Welfare Cluster to synchronize and coordinate delivery of social protection programs by concerned government agencies.

At the same time, Secretary Cabral reported that the Philippine government continues to formulate policies and programs to improve the welfare of Filipino families. Among these plans are: information exchange on good practices addressing issues affecting families; organization of training programs for service providers such as the recently concluded 2nd level ASEAN training-workshop for practitioners handling cases of domestic violence; develop and participate in the Exchange Training Programs for social work practitioners and policy makers; and conduct studies and researches on emerging issues affecting the stability of families that can be shared to other countries, the DSWD press report disclosed. (PIA 6)


DepEd reforms enhance resource and school management

Pasig City -- "If they can't balance their own checkbooks, they are not fit to handle school finances," Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Jesli Lapus said about the need for management training for school heads.

The Education Chief also mentioned that school principals are currently being trained to manage cash and other resources in line with the department's thrust to make school heads better managers. "Our principals must have the knowhow on resources management including bookkeeping or understand what is the 'bottom line' when budget preparation time comes around," said Lapus.

Lapus has instituted various reforms that resulted to improved administrative procedures and imbued school heads with financial know-how to better manage their schools.

He also disclosed that "procedures and guidelines on Records Management, Property Acquisition, and Disaster Risk Reduction have also been manualized to avoid ad-hoc solutions, influence peddling, and other unethical practices.

"The manual will standardize handling of official records like report cards, student profiles, and teacher records. This will ensure that personnel movement caused by promotions, transfers, and retirements will not in any way affect operation of schools.

Among the department's accomplishments include the newly-instituted procurement system with more effective checks and balances. DepEd's National Textbook Delivery Program has been cited by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) – an international forum of donor governments and multilateral organizations including the United Nations and World Bank.

The OECD-prepared fact sheet which recognized DepEd's procurement system was circulated to 22 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean that are piloting and testing tools and methodologies for assessing national procurement systems. (DepEd)


Experts cite benefits of conditional cash transfer program for the poor

MANILA, Dec. 4 (PNA) – Experts on Thursday highlighted during a discussion-forum the benefits of the conditional cash transfer (CCT) program, touted as one of the best ways to cushion the impact of higher food and fuel prices on the poor.

The World Bank (WB), which spearheaded the event at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM), said a well-targeted social safety net program like CCT could help reduce poverty through improvements of the poor families’ health, nutritional, and educational status.

WB Country Director for the Philippines Bert Hofman said the program has become very popular in Latin America as well as other parts of the globe due to its direct positive impact since the program provides immediate relief to the needy.

Relatively, Margaret Grosh, lead economist of the Bank’s Social Protection Unit, said the program “helps households manage risk.”

“At the minimum, safety net programs help households facing hard times avoid irreversible losses, allowing them to maintain household assets from which they earn their living, and to adequately nourish and school their children,” she said.

In the country, the CCT program is being implemented by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) since January this year.

Around 6,000 families from pilot areas namely Agusan del Sur, Misamis Occidental, Pasay and Caloocan are covered by the program.

The beneficiaries are provided P500 a month for health and nutrition expenses and P300 a month per qualified child, for a maximum of three kids, for educational expenses.

DSWD Secretary Esperanza Cabral clarified that the program is a “development program that invests in people (and) is not a dole-out.”

She explained that the program, dubbed as Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino (PPP), “enhances the role of parents and helps them accomplish their duties and responsibilities to their children.”
She said the beneficiaries were selected “through computerized “proxy means test” that ranks poor households based on their household characteristics.”

“The program encourages them to invest in the future, in particular in the health and education of their children and in the nutrition and food for their families,” Cabral said, adding that the department targets to cover 320,000 households nationwide by year-end.

Cabral said initial results show improved use of educational and health services among the poor, which in turn, helped local governments meet their social services targets.

This, she said, was achieved since the beneficiaries’ children are required to stay in schools and have regular check ups at health centers while pregnant women were required to complete their pre and post-natal check ups and are assisted by skilled birth attendant during childbirth.

Also, WB chief economist for the Human Development Network Ariel Fiszbein said CCT has reduced the number of people living below the poverty line in Nicaragua by 4.3 percentage points, Colombia by 2.9 percentage points and Mexico by 1.3 percentage points.

“The twin goals for CCT are immediate income support for poor households enabling them to deal with shocks, such as the current economic and price shocks, as well as long-run poverty reduction through improvements in poor children’s human capital – health, nutrition and education,” he said.

WB said CCT is a major poverty alleviation program in Mexico, Brazil and Ecuador, with each respective government spending 0.5 percent of their economy’s gross domestic product (GDP) for the program.

While in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Turkey and Chile, the program’s scope is smaller serving disadvantaged groups like girls and ethic minorities, it said.

“CCTs have generally led to substantial increase in the utilization of education and health services among the poor,” Fiszbein said but pointed out the need for a very rigorous targeting system to minimize leakages of resources. (PNA)


House leader supports any mode in pursuing Charter change

MANILA, Dec. 4 (PNA) -- Standing firm on his position that updating the economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution is the "most urgent demand of the times," especially in the face of the creeping threats of global recession, House Speaker Prospero Nograles on Thursday said he is inclined to support any mode in pursuing Charter change (Cha-cha).

"The mode through which reforms can be instituted is just a secondary concern. Any mode is okay with me as long as it will correct the Constitution's highly restrictive economic provisions," he said.

"What matters most is to hasten reforms so that this country can move on and fast," he added.
Nograles said he is even amenable to the pervading Senate sentiment to review and amend the Constitution through a Constitutional Convention (Con-con) whose members could be elected in the 2010 elections.

"I would tow the Con-con line if that’s the brick position of the Senate, if it’s the only way we can break the stalemate. What is vital is to achieve fundamental reforms," he said.

The House Speaker assured that the issue of term extension of incumbent public officials, particularly that of the President, will be out of the agenda.

"The House Resolution which I filed only zero in on the economic provisions that would allow the ownership by foreign corporations and associations of alienable public or private lands and promote the influx of foreign investments," he stressed.

Nograles also clarified that as leader of the House of the People, he will never prevent an open, objective and comprehensive debate of issues affecting the move for reformation.

"This is what democracy is all about. Each member of the House is free to bring to fore issues of public concern, including what and how to institute reforms in the Constitution," he said. (PNA)


Seguis as GRP chief negotiator a “meaningful gift” for Mindanao, says MILF top official

MANILA, Dec. 4 (PNA) — The appointment of Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Rafael Seguis as chief negotiator for the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) in peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is “a meaningful gift” to Mindanao, a top official of the MILF said in a statement today.

”Allah has probably answered the prayers of war-stricken innocent people,” said Aleem Abdulaziz S. Mimbantas, MILF Vice Chairman for military affairs.

Mimbantas’ statement was written on an MILF letterhead from Camp Bushra Somoiorang and was released to the press by the Office of Seguis, Undersecretary for Special Concerns of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

The appointment of Seguis, it said, “is a meaningful gift to the hundreds of thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IPD), Bangsamoro and Filipino alike,” who are suffering in Mindanao, said Aleem.

Without any reference to the scuttled Memorandum of Agreement on the Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD), Aleem reiterated that “the only civilized and non-violent solution to the Mindanao problem is through a political solution.” (PNA)


Service exports to outpace RP merchandise next year

DAVAO CITY, Dec. 4 (PNA) -- Philippines' service exports are expected to outpace the growth of the country's merchandise exports starting next year.

Senen Perlada, executive director of the Export Development Council (EDC), said more countries are now looking to the Philippines for its low-cost services and skilled manpower to cut down operation and production costs amidst the global recession and crumbling economies of Europe, United States, Japan and other countries.

"We're seeing more and more demand for Filipino engineering services for many Arab construction projects in the Middle East. These new projects will continue in the years to come, so it's best for us to grab this big opportunity," Perlada said.

The EDC executive director also cited the rising demand for such special services as logistics, medical tourism, software programming, project management, planning and design, as well as new contracts for business process outsourcing in the Philippines.

Exports of services racked up around 11.5 million US dollars this year, up by nearly 40 percent, compared to last year's 8.4 million US dollars.

This is expected to remain steady between 35 to 40 percent growth in 2009 and 2010. Growth of merchandise exports is expected to stay around or below 4 to 6 percent in the coming years due to the projected impact in the country by the worldwide recession, according to Perlada,
Actual growth of service exports show a 29.2 percent increase during the first six months from January to June this year, compared to the same period last year, while exports of merchandise rose only 4 percent, according to the National Statistics Office (NSO).

Services that are currently being exported according to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), include Information and Communication Technology (ICT), construction, medical tourism, retirement, logistics, education and entertainment.

Listed by the DTI as merchandise exports include electronics, food, homestyle products, motor vehicle parts, minerals, natural and organic products, textiles, apparel, footwear and travel goods.

DTI Trade Undersecretary Merly Cruz is optimistic that the deepening economic integration of the ASEAN region, rising import demand from new emerging countries as well as the huge revenues Arabs earned from high oil prices earlier this year will all drive the demand for more service exports from the Philippines.

"These are big opportunities for our various local service firms to tap in foreign markets especially in these challenging times --we're sure there's so much we can offer to these countries that need our services," Cruz said. (PNA)


RP’s seaweed industry rakes $ 3-B in export earnings this year

DAVAO CITY, Dec. 4 (PNA) -- The seaweed or hydrocolloids industry in the country continues to grow by 10 to 14 percent annually resulting to huge world market earnings of $ 3 billion this year.

This was revealed by biologist and seaweed consultant Ronald Simbajon in his presentation at the Mindanao Investment Conference (Min iCon) recently held in this city.

Simbajon said there are three big major companies serving as key players of the industry with state-of-the-art facilities, including 18 local processors.

China is identified as the emerging major buyer for raw material of the carrageenan industry.
Statistics showed five years ago, over 100 carrageenan processors were already operating. There and more than 50 additional today.

The carrageenan industry requires about 80,000 metric tons of dried seaweeds annually.
The growing seaweed industry has benefited 160,000 coastal and island dwelling families and allied services farming of over 20,000 hectares.

Simbajon said the seaweed industry is a lucrative business. One-fourth hectare can generate an annual income of P300,000 at an investment cost of P80,000.

The one-fourth hectare planted to seaweed would produce 1,000 kg. per cropping within a 60-day cycle.

Seaweed raw material could be applied to various food and non-food products and liquids, among others: jellies, ham, patties, sauce, juice, petfood, toothpaste, ice cream, beer, milk and chicken.

Aside from economic benefits, seaweed is also a catalyst for ecological preservation since its biomass attracts various marine species that provides sanctuary and breeding ground for marine life while dramatically minimizing destructive fishing practices, Simbajon said.

In Mindanao, seaweed farming thrives in the farmlands of Zamboanga, Cagayan, Cotabato, Butuan, Davao Region and General Santos. (PNA)