Malacanang says gov’t to embark on nationwide information campaign on drug trafficking
The Philippine Government is embarking on a nationwide information campaign on international drug syndicates luring Filipinos to be drug couriers in exchange for a large sum of money.
Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio “Sonny” Coloma, in an interview over government-run Radyo ng Bayan on Thursday, said that information dissemination is one of the preventive measures the government is implementing to avoid Filipinos from getting involved in drug trafficking.
Coloma said the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) is now going around the regions conducting a massive information campaign on the modus operandi of international drug syndicates in a move to avoid more Filipinos from being duped.
“The lack of information allows them to be victims of these drug syndicates,” Coloma said.
He added that the PDEA and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) are also coordinating with their counterparts in other countries in the fight against transnational crimes such as drug trafficking.
Earlier, Coloma said the PDEA and NBI were successful in destroying the West African syndicate that employed Filipinos as drug mules.
As of Aug. 2010, 626 Filipinos had been arrested for drug trafficking offenses in other countries."
Coloma noted that there is also a need to strengthen the judicial system because there have been a slow progress in drug cases and very low conviction rates for drug crimes.
The Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) has reported that eight percent of drug cases are dismissed before going into trial, seven percent result in conviction, eight percent result in acquittal, while 76 percent remain unresolved.
The DDB further said that drug cases are often dismissed due to technicalities, such as irregularity or illegality of arrest, non-appearance of witnesses, inconsistent testimonies of witnesses, mishandling of evidence, and unreliable police laboratories.
Coloma further stressed that President Aquino has ordered concerned authorities to tighten their watch against drug smugglers in the country’s airports and ports.
“Our government is fully committed to protect the legal rights of our citizens wherever they are but we have to respect the legal system of China,” Coloma said when asked what further actions will the government take after China has sentenced three Filipinos to death row on March 30.
Coloma however said that the government is “not giving up.” (PCOO)
President Aquino leads Grand Hyatt Hotel construction launch
President Benigno S. Aquino III led the ceremonial launch for the start of official construction of the Grand Hyatt Hotel on Thursday at the Fort Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City.
The President unveiled the scale model of the 66-storey premium-category hotel that will be erected on 1.5-hetare prime lot in the former military base.
Joining the President were Dr. George S.K. Ty, General Chairman of the Metrobank Group of Companies; Alberto Lim, Secretary of Tourism; and Alfred Ty, president of Federal Land and developer of the Grand Hyatt Hotel.
Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Liu Jinhao was also present as a special guest of honor.
In his speech, President Aquino lauded the project as a manifestation of renewed investor confidence in the country and called it “a fitting representation of the progress that awaits our people in the near future.”
“…it also represents your belief in your potential for success—in filling up the rooms of the Grand Hyatt Hotel, and in continuing your profitable operations here for many years in the future,” the President said.
“In this sense, today’s unveiling is a manifestation of the rising investor confidence in this country, not in mere statements or pledges, but in actual pesos and cents,” he said. (PCOO)
Aquino sees rise in tourist arrivals this year
President Benigno S. Aquino III said he expects tourist arrivals to increase this year due to rising investor confidence in the country under his administration.
In his speech at the unveiling ceremonies launching the formal start of construction of the Grand Hyatt Hotel at Fort Bonifacio Global City in Taguig on Thursday, the President said the increase in tourists this year would surpass the numbers posted in 2009.
“Tourists, both domestic and foreign, have increased in number in the recent years. In 2010, we had more than 3.5 million of them in the country, a 16 percent increase from the 3 million we had in 2009. Our visitor receipts have also risen by about 250 million dollars from 2009 to 2010,” the President said.
“Under this administration, it seems as if this boost in tourism is going to continue further, as the second half of 2010 yielded a 21.2 percent increase in tourist arrivals, much higher than the 12% increase in the first half,” he added.
To accommodate this expected increase in tourists, the President said his government is implementing several measures including liberalizing air travel in the country and addressing issues pertaining to our category 2 status in the USA, and the banning of Philippine aviation in Europe.
“We will be allowing foreign carriers to come here (and) I have already given the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines a year to resolve these issues (pertaining to our category 2 status in the USA, and the banning of Philippine aviation in Europe),” the President stressed.
“Once we do all of this, we will be clearing some of the serious bottlenecks that have prevented more visitors from coming into this country,” he added.
To make the Philippines more attractive to potential investors, President Aquino said, his government is offering investors certain “perks” specified in the Omnibus Investments Code as “a way of reciprocating the confidence you have in us.”
“These incentives include income tax holidays, tax-free importation of capital equipment, among other things, offered by the Omnibus Investments Code,” the President said.
“We have likewise launched five Public-Private Partnerships for bidding just two weeks ago, which is further proof of the growing mutual confidence between private corporations and the Philippine government,” he added.
He stressed that “despite these breakthroughs, we remain hard at work, thinking of even more ways to encourage investment in the Philippines. “
He called on all Filipinos to take an active part in “our state rebuilding project…because our success in restoring our national dignity is ultimately hinged on our shared efforts.”
“The bottom line is this: each of us has something to contribute to the rebuilding of this nation. The things we do, no matter how small or large, have a great effect on our country. The same way someone has to repaint the walls, redesign the rooms, replace the tiles, fix the plumbing, and clean the windows in the process of renovating a building—everyone has a job to do in the challenging task of nation building,” the President concluded. (PCOO)
Government to assess country’s quake preparedness
Malacañang said there is a need to assess the quake readiness of the country to prepare the people responding to such an event and to know the structural integrity of major structures.
“We need to assess the situation in Metro Manila or the entire Philippines. There are certain areas we have been told, that are more prone to earthquakes,” Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a press briefing on Thursday.
“Those things, we have to map out. And in fact, there’s a geo hazard mapping that the government has been doing together with DOST [Department of Science and Technology] and DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources]”
And as soon as the government determines how to better handle the situation, it will ask certain government agencies to prepare the people, particularly employees and students through earthquake drills.
At the same time, Lacierda also said that major structures in the country are strong enough to withstand earthquakes because of a very good building code being adopted in the Philippines.
“We’ve asked reputable persons and authorities on structures and they were one in saying that our new building code is very good. It has engineering solutions to the problems. So, our building code is very good. It’s well-crafted,” he said.
Asked about the structural integrity of the Palace and the President’s official residence, Lacierda said they already asked the Public works department to inspect Malacanang, Bahay Pangarap and buildings nearby to assess whether they are safe or not.
“We asked Secretary [Rogelio] Singson to also check our building. Maybe, I will mention it to Secretary Singson the assessment of Ms. Punongbayan about Bahay Pangarap. And certainly, we will take a look into the safety or the sturdiness of the structures that she mentioned,” he said.
Jane Punongbayan, a Philvocs research specialist said that even the President is not safe in the Palace or even in Bahay Pangarap because it’s near Pasig River and those structures stand on soft ground. (PCOO)
