Palace says Arroyos not victims of political persecution
President Benigno Aquino III is serious in bringing in foreign medical experts to examine former president Gloria Arroyo to debunk speculations that the Arroyo family is being persecuted by the present administration, a Palace spokesperson said on Thursday.
President Benigno Aquino III is serious in bringing in foreign medical experts to examine former president Gloria Arroyo to debunk speculations that the Arroyo family is being persecuted by the present administration, a Palace spokesperson said on Thursday.
In an interview over dzBB radio Thursday morning, Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the President is serious in his offer to provide medical experts for the former leaders after the Department of Justice (DOJ) rejected her request to travel abroad to seek medical help.
Valte admitted that they got a lot of comments regarding the President’s pronouncements adding however that the announcement of the president is made out of humanitarian reason.
“The way that we look at it, it’s out of humanitarian considerations at nag-offer lang naman po tayo. Ang sinasabi ho kasi nila mayroon daw political persecution – o talagang pagdidiin kay Ginang Arroyo. Gusto lang po natin ding ipakita na hindi ito personal,” Valte said.
Valte added that the President is open to having a dialogue with the former president with regards the Palace offer although the Arroyos have earlier rejected the idea.
On Wednesday, President Aquino III said he fully supports Justice Secretary Leila De Lima’s decision disallowing former president and now congresswoman Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo from traveling abroad to seek medical treatment.
The President said in a press briefing in Malacañang that not permitting Arroyo to travel abroad ensures her being present to face the charges of electoral sabotage, a non-bailable offense, being leveled at her.
He said the government was willing to shoulder the expenses of flying in medical specialists to look into Arroyo’s medical condition to ease the former president’s need to travel.
The DoJ on Tuesday denied the former president’s request for an Allow Departure Order for lack of merit. (PCOO)
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Malacañang moves against group misrepresenting themselves as government officials
In a move to address the rising incidents of unscrupulous individuals misrepresenting themselves as government officials to victimize government employees, Malacañang appealed to all government officials and employees to confirm first the identity of the person contacting them.
Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda issued this appeal in a press briefing in Malacañang Thursday afternoon.
He asked that all officials and employees to be wary about these individuals who may prey on them by “dropping names” to instill fear or ask for a favor.
“Ang request ko sa mga government officials and employees, don’t hesitate to confirm the identity of the person calling you,” Lacierda said.
“I would like to ask the government employees to verify first the identity of the person calling because ang government employees kasi, pag binitawan ng pangalan naniniwala kaagad so I ask the government employees to verify first the identity of the person and to ask for further proof that that person they are speaking to is really that person whom he or she claims to be,” he added.
Lacierda said any person who may be contacted by these spurious individuals may report the incident to his office number 0917-8085329.
Lacierda also said that a text message currently circulating saying that his office, the Office of the Presidential Spokesperson is giving out raffle prizes, is not true.
“There’s no truth to that. The government does not hold raffle contests nor give raffle prizes,” Lacierda said. (PCOO)
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Aquino leaves Friday afternoon to attend APEC meeting in Hawaii
President Benigno S. Aquino III will leave Friday afternoon for Honolulu, Hawaii, to attend the 19th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Week. The APEC meeting in Hawaii will be held from November 8 to 13.
President Aquino, who leaves 4 p.m. Friday will be joined by a lean delegation led by Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, Transportation and Communication Secretary Mar Roxas, Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory Domingo, Energy Secretary Rene Almendras and Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda.
Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, who will also join the President in Hawaii, is already abroad, Lacierda said in a press briefing in Malacanang on Thursday.
During the APEC Leaders meeting, the President will join 20 other APEC heads of state to discuss growth and jobs, regulatory reforms and competitiveness, as well as energy efficiency and security.
APEC 2011, which is hosted by the United States, is working towards the achievement of a “seamless regional economy” within the Pacific-rim countries.
Prior to the APEC Leader’s Meeting, the President will be attending the APEC CEO Summit to be held on November 11 to 12.
After attending the CEO summit, the President will participate in the APEC Business Advisory Council Dialogue with Leaders.
Aside from attending the APEC meeting, the President is also scheduled to meet the members of the Filipino community in Honolulu, Lacierda said. (PCOO)
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Malacanang confirms work on NAIA upgrade has started
In response to the directive of President Benigno S. Aquino III to improve the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) to support the country's tourism industry in the short term, Malacanang announced on Thursday that the refurbishment and upgrading works for the airports are now underway.
Concerned government agencies are now fast-tracking the improvement of the country's airport terminals amid the negative observations made by the international community on the inferior condition of the 30-year old NAIA, according to Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda in a regular news briefing in Malacanang on Thursday.
Latest reports showed CNN's travel site, CNNGO.com, puts the Ninoy Aquino International Airport No. 5 on its list of "World's Most Hated Airports".
NAIA particularly Terminal 1, now ranks No. 1 among the “Worst Airports in the World,” according to “The Guide to Sleeping in Airports,” an interactive website that gathers reports from various reviewers.
"There are structural renovations being done. Apart from that, we also have the interior renovations being done as well. For instance, lighting, landscaping...," Lacierda said, adding that Transportation Secretary Manuel Roxas II had already briefed the President about the on-going refurbishment and upgrading works.
Interviewed over Youtube’s World View Interview Series on Friday, President Aquino acknowledged the need to improve the NAIA saying the 30-year old structure has already reached its saturation point.
“There is a plan for it, for improving the NAIA, structurally and aesthetically.....It will be a stop-gap measure for the next four or five years because we are looking at an alternative for that complex given the fact that it will be hard for us to support the 10 million tourist arrivals that we are targeting,” the President said over Youtube’s World View interview series .
It was reported earlier that the Aquino administration plans to relocate NAIA from Pasay City to Clark, Pampanga. The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is considering phasing out and selling the NAIA in Pasay-Paranaque in order to pay for the cost of the proposed Clark International Airport that will meet the long-term airport needs of the country, and boost the country’s tourism industry.
However, Sec. Roxas said the plan depends on the success of the NorthRail project and the privatization of the existing NAIA property. At the same time, the government hopes to raise around $2.5 billion with the privatization of the 440-hectare NAIA property to fund NAIA’s relocation to Clark. (PCOO)
