Aquino prays for Filipinos to remain free and prosperous
President Benigno S. Aquino III’s prayer is for the Filipinos to continue to enjoy the blessings of democracy and be finally free of poverty.
“A generation from now, perhaps another Filipino will stand here, and say to you: I am glad to say, that we remain not only free, but are now prosperous… this is my prayer,” the President said in his message at the Mount Saint Vincent College in New York, where he was conferred the college’s highest honor---the Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Medal.
The Chief Executive, who is in the United States for a weeklong working visit, noted that the People Power in 1986 that toppled the dictatorship and restored democracy now “serves as the bones and sinews of our great mandate for reform.”
According to the President, now that he is at the helm as the country’s chief executive, he would continue his mother’s avowed legacy in fighting poverty and corruption.
“Now I, in turn, have been called to work with my people to ensure that democracy benefits all Filipinos, and not just a few,” the Chief Executive said.
The Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Medal was conferred on the President in recognition of his extraordinary service as a public official, like it once honored his mother, the late former President Corazon Aquino in 1986, for his commitment to democracy, advocacy to the poor, opposing corruption, and promoting peaceful change in the Philippines. The Former President is an alumnus of the Roman Catholic college at the Riversdale in the Big Apple.
In his acceptance speech, the President said he accepted the award for the Filipino people who clamored for reform and elected him President.
“In accepting this award, I am humbled by what this medal represents: your solidarity with my people. You stood with us in dark days. You stand with us now, in brighter days: the greatest period of optimism my people have seen, since the fall of Ferdinand Marcos,” the President said.
The College’s Department of Modern Languages offers the Filipino language and it will soon put up a Filipino Studies program.
President Aquino’s visit to the College is symbolic of his family legacy and commitment to democracy.
The reception that followed the conferment rites was attended by Trustees, Corazon Aquino scholars, classmates of President Corazon Aquino and members of Samahan, a Filipino student organization on campus.
The St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Medal, the College’s highest honor, is named after the native New Yorker, Saint and founder of the Sisters of Charity. It is awarded in recognition of outstanding achievements, generosity of spirit and extraordinary self-sacrifice. Since the early 1960's, the award has been given to distinguished alumnae/i, Sisters of Charity, Trustees, retiring presidents of the College, and friends of the College whose achievements, contributions, and service to others have been exceptionally meritorious. (PCOO)
RP-Vietnam to ink four agreements
Bilateral relations between the Philippines and Vietnam are expected to be further strengthened when the two country’s leaders sign four agreements in Hanoi next month.
President President Benigno S. Aquino III is scheduled to visit Hanoi in October after accepting a personal invitation from Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet when the two leaders met at the sidelines of the 65th United Nations General Assembly in New York Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila).
In an interview, President Aquino said his meeting with President Nguyen had concretized their respective views that relations between their two countries are growing stronger.
He added that the government and the people of Vietnam are eagerly anticipating his visit next month where four agreements would be signed.
According to a statement of the Philippine Mission posted on its website, these pacts “will institutionalize bilateral cooperation in the areas of higher education, defense and maritime affairs."
It added that President Aquino cited the “value” of Vietnam as “a good friend and strategic partner” and expressed confidence that relations between the two countries would become stronger.
“We value Vietnam as a good friend and strategic partner. We are confident that these ties will only become stronger. I look forward to the continuation of the excellent bilateral relations that our two countries share in diverse areas of interest," the Philippine Mission statement quoted President Aquino as saying to President Nguyen.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo who, together with Philippine Permanent Representative to the UN Libran Cabactulan, were with President Aquino, said the meeting between the two leaders “went well.”
“The meeting went well and because of the very meaningful exchange during this first encounter between the two leaders, I expect President Aquino’s visit to Vietnam in October to be meaningful and successful," Romulo added.
The Philippines and Vietnam will celebrate 35 years of diplomatic relations in 2011 after capping off 2008 by achieving the two countries’ target of US$2 billion worth of bilateral trade.
The Philippines and Vietnam are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Vietnam is currently the chair of ASEAN.(PCOO)
Aquino wants comprehensive plan against jueteng
President Benigno S. Aquino III is keen on eradicating jueteng in the country through rigid and comprehensive planning measures.
In an interview Tuesday night in New York (Wednesday in Manila), the President said he has already directed Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesus Robredo to come up with a comprehensive plan to eradicate the illegal numbers game. The Chief Executive also said that conceptualization is underway in efforts to draw up a stringent approach to stop illegal gambling.
President Aquino said authorities are now investigating the list of personalities involved in the illegal game. He stressed that rather than relying on baseless accusations, they are now focused on gathering sufficient evidence against these suspected jueteng operators and beneficiaries to ensure that they will be put behind bars.
In a Senate committee hearing last Tuesday, retired Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz implicated former PNP chief Gen. Jesus Verzosa and DILG Undersecretary Rico Puno, among others, as recipients of jueteng payola.
Cruz submitted to the Senate his own list of people allegedly benefiting from the illegal game. The prelate also said Tony Boy Cojuangco, a second cousin of the President, asked him to go “easy” on Puno on the issue of jueteng.
The President refused to comment on the bishop’s allegations, saying he had no personal knowledge of the issue. He added that a group of people has been tasked to look into the matter.
In the past, the government legalized small town lottery (STL) to democratize charity at the national and local levels and stamp out the illegal numbers game. (PCOO)
Aquino meets with Kissinger
In his debut on the world stage, President Benigno S. Aquino met with former United States Secretary of State Henry Alfred Kissinger on Tuesday in New York (Wednesday in Manila) to get some insights on foreign relations.
A political scientist who advised US Presidents Dwight Eisenhower, John F.Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, Dr. Kissinger’s expertise in foreign relations is one thing the President will not ignore that he took the opportunity to meet with him at the Sofitel Hotel in New York.
The President noted that the Harvard professor of government and foreign policy adviser for the Nixon and Ford administrations, could help guide the Aquino Administration in its international relations.
In addition to his diplomatic achievements with China, the Soviet Union, and the Middle East, Kissinger led negotiations that brought about a ceasefire agreement in the Vietnam War. He shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973 with North Vietnamese negotiator Le DucTho. Kissinger now runs an international consultancy.
In another development, President Aquino met with the officials of the Synergos Institute and AES Corporation.
During the meeting with the Synergos officials, some concerns were raised and they discussed the institute’s promise to continue helping the government in its anti-poverty projects.
The Synergos Institute is a non-profit organization with a mission to reduce global poverty through inclusive partnerships that bring together government, business, civil society and local communities. Synergos in the Philippines focuses on strengthening the Senior Fellows and members of the Global Philanthropists Circle to promote sustainable approaches to overcoming poverty and inequity.
With the AES Corporation officials, the President said they discussed the power giant’s possible expansion of its power plant’s capacity in Masinloc, Zambales.
AES is an electricity generation and distribution company that operates the country’s first privatized thermal plant.
In April 2008, AES expanded into the Philippines, completing the $930 million purchase and transfer of assets of the 660MW Masinloc coal-fired thermal power plant.
“AES will help us provide more reliable energy to the Philippine market,” the President said.(PCOO)
Aquino’s efforts get thumbs up from WB official
President Benigno S. Aquino’s determination to fight poverty, promote economic growth and uphold good governance received approval from World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick.
Zoellick and the President met at the Sofitel Hotel in New York at 3 p.m. Wednesday (Thursday in Manila) on the sidelines of the 65th United Nations General Assembly.
“The Philippines has made a commendable commitment to expanding a modern social protection system, which not only protects the poor, but also encourages investments in health and education. Similar programs have made a real impact on achieving the MDGs in countries around the world,” Zoellick said in a statement.
The World Bank President commended the President’s efforts to improve the country’s investment climate by rationalizing the regulatory system and tapping the private sector for infrastructure developments through the so-called public-private partnerships (PPP).
The government has vowed to cut the approval process for solicited proposals to six months and for unsolicited projects to nine months. The President also ordered the creation of the PPP center that will supervise projects under the said scheme.
“Tapping the resources and energy of the private sector through carefully designed public-private sector partnerships would go a long way in achieving sustainable growth that create more jobs for the poor,” Zoellick said.
He noted that there has been increasing implementation of PPP for infrastructure development among developed and developing countries.
Zoellick stressed that WB is ready to forge a stronger partnership with the Philippines for achieving rapid, sustainable and broad-based growth. (PCOO)
Aquino orders Luistro to plug shortages in education in 2 years
President Benigno S. Aquino III has ordered Education Secretary Armin Luistro to address all shortages in classrooms, instructional materials, teaching staff in two years “so that no schoolchild from ages 5 to 18 shall be deprived of basic education.”
In a speech before scholars, teachers and educators at the “Interventions in Education 2010” program of the Aboitiz Foundation at the Cebu International Convention Center Thursday, Luistro said the Aquino administration considers every peso spent in education not as a cost but as an investment in ensuring a better future for the schoolchildren.
Luistro said that based on his calculations, he must address 103,000 teachers nationwide; 72,000 classrooms by 2011 and 77,000 classrooms by 2012; 7 million classroom seats; 141,000 toilet and sanitary facilities and 96 million textbooks to achieve a 1 book per student ratio.
But based on the proposed 2011 budget, Luistro said he would only be able to build 14,000 classrooms, with the balance to be built through public private partnerships (PPP) such as the one that Aboitiz Foundation, under chairman Jon Ramon Aboitiz, has been doing since 2000.
Aboitiz said the group has appropriated P1.4 billion for various corporate social responsibility programs and projects of which P711 million or half is for education-related interventions, which does not yet include the investments from the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation.
President Aquino he said, is pushing for public private partnerships because we know that there are a thousand and one individuals who have the resources, the expertise and the skills to give to their countrymen in whatever field.
“My role in DepEd is to link, match and map where to deploy these resources, investments and skills in areas which are direly in need of them,” he said.
Luistro said he is glad that the interventions of Aboitiz in education are “measurable, scalable, sustainable and transparent.”
Luistro said he also hopes that Aboitiz’ intervention in education will also involve greening (with fruit trees and vegetables) the schools and universities it has adopted so that the schoolchildren, and eventually the entire province, will be self sufficient in these vital nutritional foods.
Aboitiz has been building schools which it donates to local governments and DepED and scholarship grants; donating integrated computerization programs to public schools with brand new computers, printers and software licenses; refurbishing computer laboratories and conducting computer skills training for teachers; and implementing an Adopt A School and BrigadaEskwela programs with the DepEd.
Aboitiz said that todate, the company’s intervention has benefited 32,000 public school students from 261 new classrooms it built since 1996. Nearly 10,000 students have benefited from over 1,000 computers donated by the Foundation and close to 60 computer labs had been refurbished.
Areas covered are the entire National Capital Region, Region VII (or Central Visayas) and Region XI (or the Davao Region), as well as the schools divisions and districts in Nueva Ecija, Sarangani, Basilan and Tawi –Tawi, Aboitiz added.
Every year, we support about 1,300 students – from street children to college students -- through different scholarship programs. Our other interventions include library kit donations that have benefited some15,000 students, Aboitiz added. (PCOO)
Aquino’s optimism over US trip spills into Manhattan street
NEW YORK: Should the enthusiasm of a group of friends and well-wishers of President Benigno S. Aquino III be any indication, they all shared a common eagerness over the prospects of the President’s working visit to the US.
This was evident Wednesday morning when word about the President’s intention to grab a hotdog sandwich along the streets of Manhattan. Media men covering the Chief Executive’s initial working visit to America eagerly waited for President Aquino to step out of Sofitel Hotel on 44th Street and make good his promise.
While it offered an opportunity for reporters to shoot their usual queries to the President, venturing to a Sharbett hotdog stand in the corner of Avenue of the Americas and 45th Street in busy Manhattan at noontime, just a few steps from Sofitel Hotel, was one major security concern for both the Presidential Security Guards and the US Secret Service men assigned to safeguard the visiting Head of State.
“I’m glad that everything has so far turned out well,” said the President, responding to a question about how he felt about his first working visit to America. “Yesterday, I met with the President of Vietnam, Nguyen Minh Triet, and he was rather cordial. He provided most valuable insights that indicated our relationship with Vietnam will continue to prosper,” he said adding that while some very minor concerns were brought up, these were matters that could easily be resolved.”
He likewise mentioned meeting with Henry Kissinger, the former US Secretary of State, as well as Synergos officials and key civil society leaders involved in governmental affairs, some already being implemented and others to be operational soon.
These groups have assured us to continue working for government for the benefit of the greater community. “This afternoon will be the start of discussions over the real concerns of this working visit, which is to find as many potential investors to help strengthen the country’s energy security, like AES Corporation. “
The President will be meeting with more business leaders on the fourth day of his US visit, like officials of Citigroup, and during an economic conference which the company is hosting, providing the administration’s economic team led by Finance Secretary, Cesar Purisima to present their blueprint “for creating opportunities through good governance.”
The President is set to sign a memorandum of agreement with Coach Co., the Luen Thai Holding Ltd., as well as Sutherland Global Services, an outsourcing company interested in expanding its operations in the country.
These two companies can reportedly generate as much as 12,000 job opportunities. which is more than enough reason to have hotdog sandwich in the streets of Manhattan.(PCOO)
