Malacañang confident DTI will meet export targets
Malacañang expressed confidence the Department of Trade and Industry would be able to fulfill the country’s export target of $120-billion as contained in the Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP).
The PEDP seeks to double the value of exports from $51.5 billion in 2010 to $120 billion by 2016 through various programs aimed at increasing exports by 10 percent beginning 2011.
Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte told a press briefing on Wednesday that the government was supportive of these DTI programs that, according to DTI Secretary Gregory Domingo, will help exporters make full use of the opportunities presented by existing free-trade agreements (FTAs) and new preferential trade deals with the United States and Europe.
“Secretary Domingo said the Department remains optimistic and that they plan to exhaust other means of providing assistance to the export industry given the downturn we’ve seen in 2011,” Valte said.
“Of course it should be given a chance and we are fully supportive of the DTI efforts to help our exporters,” she added. (PCOO)
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Govt announces release of fund for waste management, Iloilo irrigation project
The Aquino administration announced the release of P680 million intended for solid waste and flood control projects as well as for the budget of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) also released P450 million for the Philippine-Korea irrigation project in Iloilo.
“Iloilo is one of our major rice basins and in line with the administration’s target of rice sufficiency by 2013, the money was released to support the first large-scale reservoir dam outside of Luzon that would provide uninterrupted irrigation water supply to 31,840 hectares of land mostly in Iloilo,” Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said in a press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday.
Early this week, the DBM said the Aquino government has lined-up P141.8-billion worth of infrastructure projects, funded by the recently enacted General Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2012, which are ready for implementation starting January.
Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad said these infrastructure projects include national roads and bridges; airports, seaports and lighthouses; classrooms and other education facilities; potable water supply systems, irrigation and post-harvest facilities; including flood control and slope protection structures.
He said the DBM will issue the allotments for the P141.8-billion infrastructure projects so that implementing departments and agencies could bid out their projects.
Because of the early approval of the 2012 appropriations, Abad said agencies can also start the project implementation this January compared to government’s time frame last year, Abad said. (PCOO)
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Malacanang says DOE is forming a team to scrutinize oil companies
The Department of Energy (DoE) is currently forming a team that will scrutinize the books of accounts of the oil companies in support of President Benigno S. Aquino III's call for transparency, a Palace official said on Wednesday.
"From what I understand from Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, they are close to already forming the team that will scrutinize the books of the oil companies. They already have representation from the sectors," Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said during the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday.
Report said the oil firms are willing to open their books of accounts for government examination in response to a call from the President to face public scrutiny.
On the other hand, various groups expressed concern over reports that oil players will implement upward price adjustments this January, according to news reports.
Valte assured that the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is regularly conducting monitoring of prices to prevent overpricing.
"The DTI is always there to make sure that any increases in prices are warranted and are not in the area of overpricing," Valte said.
Oil companies are ready to follow the requirements being imposed by the DoE as mandated by appropriate provisions” relevant laws, such as the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act.
The oil firms are also mandated to comply strictly with the “financial protocols of the Bureau of Customs and Bureau of Internal Revenue, as well as statutory submissions to the Securities and Exchange Commission. (PCOO)
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Malacanang assures Filipino workers in Syria of Aquino government’s assistance, long-term support
Malacanang assured the Aquino government’s immediate assistance as well as long-term support to the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who were affected by the escalation of violence due to political unrest in Syria specifically the creation of more jobs locally for better opportunities in their own country.
Presidential Deputy Spokesperson Abigail Valte made the assurance in reaction to the OFW concerns on lack of economic opportunity in the Philippines during her first media briefing this year in Malacanang on Wednesday.
Valte said that the government, through the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), has been providing enough financial assistance to the affected OFWs that they can use in small businesses of their choice.
“Meron naman po tayong ibinibigay na assistance from the Department of Labor and Employment, meron po tayong maliit na start-up fund na naibibigay that we believe will somehow provide the assistance that they need until such time that they can be deployed to other countries who have open opportunities for them,” Valte said.
She echoed the Department of Foreign Affairs’ (DFA) call to heed to the appeal on mandatory repatriation to ensure their safety.
“Again, allow us to reiterate that if you (OFWs) feel that your safety is threatened please contact the embassy and allow them to repatriate you,” Valte noted adding that the DFA has been exerting all-out efforts to account for the OFWs regardless of whether they are documented or not.
“Secretary Del Rosario of Foreign Affairs said that there is no distinction between the documented and undocumented Filipinos in Syria when it comes to government’s repatriation efforts,” Valte said.
“Yung long-term assistance naman po, in the case of Libya, we did look for other opportunities in other countries for them, apart from the short-term assistance that was given… of course it is the long-term goal to provide more jobs here so that going abroad will be a choice and not a necessity for most,” she added.
On Monday, the government has reiterated an appeal to over 4,000 Filipinos who are still in Syria to heed the government’s call for mandatory repatriation.
The Philippine Embassy in Damascus reported that the capital remains on high alert following the back-to-back car bombings there.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario flew to Syria recently to personally lead the agency’s efforts to convince the Filipinos to have themselves repatriated to Manila at government’s expense.
The Philippines has so far repatriated 434 Filipinos back to Manila since the start of the political crisis in Syria in March. Of this number, 349 were repatriated after the Philippine government called for their voluntary repatriation in August. (PCOO)
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Aquino approves Palace draft of Freedom of Information Bill
President Benigno S. Aquino III green lighted the Palace proposal on the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill pending in Congress, which calls for the mandatory disclosure of government information to ensure enhanced transparency in government transactions.
The President met Wednesday morning with Secretaries Florencio Abad, Rene Almendras, Ricky Carandang, Edwin Lacierda and Undersecretary Manuel L. Quezon III to discuss the details of the Freedom of Information Bill.
Quezon, who shepherded the FOI bill in the Executive branch, said in a press conference in Malacanang on Wednesday that they conducted discussions with various stakeholders for several months regarding the bill based on the instructions of the President.
He said they presented the results of the consultations and studies to the President during Wednesday’s meeting.
“And the President’s marching orders to us was and this is his words: ‘to push ahead with the Freedom of Information,’” Quezon said.
However, Quezon noted that the President asked for the removal of the proposed Information Commission from the draft because the Chief Executive felt that it would add another layer of bureaucracy.
“The overall intention of this whole exercise, besides to make it as democratic and consultative as possible, was precisely because we were all working under the view that we have to make the constitutional injunction making information a right of the public a living reality,” Quezon said.
Asked about how soon the Palace expects the passage of the bill, he said it would depend on the leadership of both houses of Congress. But he said there is a consensus among lawmakers to make the bill a major achievement of the 15thCongress.
Inputs to the present version, the Tanada bill, will be included through amendments on the proposal which is currently pending in Congress.
While not all information can be released to the public, he said, the general rule is that information should always be available to the people as long as it doesn’t fall among those considered as restricted information.
These legitimate exceptions include information that harm the ability of the state to protect peace and order, diplomatic relations with other countries, and those that would expose police and military operations.
The President expressed his support to the FOI bill when he ran for President in the May 2010 presidential election. (PCOO)
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Continue and step up anti-crime efforts, Ochoa exhorts PNP amid lower crime rate
Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on Wednesday lauded the Philippine National Police (PNP) for its efforts in bringing down the country’s crime rate last year while asking police officials to take more effective measures to improve the peace and order situation.
“Although the reduction in crime is welcome, this should not be a cause for complacency. The PNP must continue to strive to reduce crime even further, ensure public safety, and maintain peace and order in the country,” Ochoa said in a statement.
Ochoa was reacting to a report released by the PNP showing that crimes across the country fell by 23.36 percent in 2011 from the previous year. Official data from the PNP showed that crimes committed last year dropped significantly to 248,378 from 2010 figures of 324,083.
The PNP also noted that figures compiled last year represented only half of the 502,665 total recorded crimes in 2009.
Ochoa, who chairs the Cabinet Cluster on Security, Justice, and Peace and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC), commended the PNP for putting in place measures to curb crime, but enjoined the 140,000-strong police force to continue to pursue sustainable crime prevention and reduction strategies.
“Despite these successes, our police should continue to step up its anti-crime efforts and must remain on alert against all sorts of crime,” Ochoa said.
Ochoa added that law enforcers should be encouraged by the example of President Benigno S. Aquino III, who has shown that under the present government, “no one is above the law, and those who violate our laws will be held accountable for their crimes.”
Earlier, PNP spokesperson Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. said the declining crime rate can be credited to the “strict implementation of police integrated patrol system nationwide.
Cruz said the presence of police supervisors in barangays (villages) “resulted in resolution of petty crimes and close cooperation of the public and local government units.”
He also cited the PNP’s use of new technology like the “E-blotter and E-warrants, which resulted to more wanted persons jailed.”
The average monthly index crime rate also showed a decreasing trend: 27.52 in 2009, 18.10 in 2010, and 13.62 in 2011, the report said. (PCOO)
Malacañang expressed confidence the Department of Trade and Industry would be able to fulfill the country’s export target of $120-billion as contained in the Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP).
The PEDP seeks to double the value of exports from $51.5 billion in 2010 to $120 billion by 2016 through various programs aimed at increasing exports by 10 percent beginning 2011.
Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte told a press briefing on Wednesday that the government was supportive of these DTI programs that, according to DTI Secretary Gregory Domingo, will help exporters make full use of the opportunities presented by existing free-trade agreements (FTAs) and new preferential trade deals with the United States and Europe.
“Secretary Domingo said the Department remains optimistic and that they plan to exhaust other means of providing assistance to the export industry given the downturn we’ve seen in 2011,” Valte said.
“Of course it should be given a chance and we are fully supportive of the DTI efforts to help our exporters,” she added. (PCOO)
.
Govt announces release of fund for waste management, Iloilo irrigation project
The Aquino administration announced the release of P680 million intended for solid waste and flood control projects as well as for the budget of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) also released P450 million for the Philippine-Korea irrigation project in Iloilo.
“Iloilo is one of our major rice basins and in line with the administration’s target of rice sufficiency by 2013, the money was released to support the first large-scale reservoir dam outside of Luzon that would provide uninterrupted irrigation water supply to 31,840 hectares of land mostly in Iloilo,” Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said in a press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday.
Early this week, the DBM said the Aquino government has lined-up P141.8-billion worth of infrastructure projects, funded by the recently enacted General Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2012, which are ready for implementation starting January.
Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad said these infrastructure projects include national roads and bridges; airports, seaports and lighthouses; classrooms and other education facilities; potable water supply systems, irrigation and post-harvest facilities; including flood control and slope protection structures.
He said the DBM will issue the allotments for the P141.8-billion infrastructure projects so that implementing departments and agencies could bid out their projects.
Because of the early approval of the 2012 appropriations, Abad said agencies can also start the project implementation this January compared to government’s time frame last year, Abad said. (PCOO)
.
Malacanang says DOE is forming a team to scrutinize oil companies
The Department of Energy (DoE) is currently forming a team that will scrutinize the books of accounts of the oil companies in support of President Benigno S. Aquino III's call for transparency, a Palace official said on Wednesday.
"From what I understand from Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, they are close to already forming the team that will scrutinize the books of the oil companies. They already have representation from the sectors," Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said during the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday.
Report said the oil firms are willing to open their books of accounts for government examination in response to a call from the President to face public scrutiny.
On the other hand, various groups expressed concern over reports that oil players will implement upward price adjustments this January, according to news reports.
Valte assured that the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is regularly conducting monitoring of prices to prevent overpricing.
"The DTI is always there to make sure that any increases in prices are warranted and are not in the area of overpricing," Valte said.
Oil companies are ready to follow the requirements being imposed by the DoE as mandated by appropriate provisions” relevant laws, such as the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act.
The oil firms are also mandated to comply strictly with the “financial protocols of the Bureau of Customs and Bureau of Internal Revenue, as well as statutory submissions to the Securities and Exchange Commission. (PCOO)
.
Malacanang assures Filipino workers in Syria of Aquino government’s assistance, long-term support
Malacanang assured the Aquino government’s immediate assistance as well as long-term support to the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who were affected by the escalation of violence due to political unrest in Syria specifically the creation of more jobs locally for better opportunities in their own country.
Presidential Deputy Spokesperson Abigail Valte made the assurance in reaction to the OFW concerns on lack of economic opportunity in the Philippines during her first media briefing this year in Malacanang on Wednesday.
Valte said that the government, through the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), has been providing enough financial assistance to the affected OFWs that they can use in small businesses of their choice.
“Meron naman po tayong ibinibigay na assistance from the Department of Labor and Employment, meron po tayong maliit na start-up fund na naibibigay that we believe will somehow provide the assistance that they need until such time that they can be deployed to other countries who have open opportunities for them,” Valte said.
She echoed the Department of Foreign Affairs’ (DFA) call to heed to the appeal on mandatory repatriation to ensure their safety.
“Again, allow us to reiterate that if you (OFWs) feel that your safety is threatened please contact the embassy and allow them to repatriate you,” Valte noted adding that the DFA has been exerting all-out efforts to account for the OFWs regardless of whether they are documented or not.
“Secretary Del Rosario of Foreign Affairs said that there is no distinction between the documented and undocumented Filipinos in Syria when it comes to government’s repatriation efforts,” Valte said.
“Yung long-term assistance naman po, in the case of Libya, we did look for other opportunities in other countries for them, apart from the short-term assistance that was given… of course it is the long-term goal to provide more jobs here so that going abroad will be a choice and not a necessity for most,” she added.
On Monday, the government has reiterated an appeal to over 4,000 Filipinos who are still in Syria to heed the government’s call for mandatory repatriation.
The Philippine Embassy in Damascus reported that the capital remains on high alert following the back-to-back car bombings there.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario flew to Syria recently to personally lead the agency’s efforts to convince the Filipinos to have themselves repatriated to Manila at government’s expense.
The Philippines has so far repatriated 434 Filipinos back to Manila since the start of the political crisis in Syria in March. Of this number, 349 were repatriated after the Philippine government called for their voluntary repatriation in August. (PCOO)
.
Aquino approves Palace draft of Freedom of Information Bill
President Benigno S. Aquino III green lighted the Palace proposal on the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill pending in Congress, which calls for the mandatory disclosure of government information to ensure enhanced transparency in government transactions.
The President met Wednesday morning with Secretaries Florencio Abad, Rene Almendras, Ricky Carandang, Edwin Lacierda and Undersecretary Manuel L. Quezon III to discuss the details of the Freedom of Information Bill.
Quezon, who shepherded the FOI bill in the Executive branch, said in a press conference in Malacanang on Wednesday that they conducted discussions with various stakeholders for several months regarding the bill based on the instructions of the President.
He said they presented the results of the consultations and studies to the President during Wednesday’s meeting.
“And the President’s marching orders to us was and this is his words: ‘to push ahead with the Freedom of Information,’” Quezon said.
However, Quezon noted that the President asked for the removal of the proposed Information Commission from the draft because the Chief Executive felt that it would add another layer of bureaucracy.
“The overall intention of this whole exercise, besides to make it as democratic and consultative as possible, was precisely because we were all working under the view that we have to make the constitutional injunction making information a right of the public a living reality,” Quezon said.
Asked about how soon the Palace expects the passage of the bill, he said it would depend on the leadership of both houses of Congress. But he said there is a consensus among lawmakers to make the bill a major achievement of the 15thCongress.
Inputs to the present version, the Tanada bill, will be included through amendments on the proposal which is currently pending in Congress.
While not all information can be released to the public, he said, the general rule is that information should always be available to the people as long as it doesn’t fall among those considered as restricted information.
These legitimate exceptions include information that harm the ability of the state to protect peace and order, diplomatic relations with other countries, and those that would expose police and military operations.
The President expressed his support to the FOI bill when he ran for President in the May 2010 presidential election. (PCOO)
.
Continue and step up anti-crime efforts, Ochoa exhorts PNP amid lower crime rate
Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on Wednesday lauded the Philippine National Police (PNP) for its efforts in bringing down the country’s crime rate last year while asking police officials to take more effective measures to improve the peace and order situation.
“Although the reduction in crime is welcome, this should not be a cause for complacency. The PNP must continue to strive to reduce crime even further, ensure public safety, and maintain peace and order in the country,” Ochoa said in a statement.
Ochoa was reacting to a report released by the PNP showing that crimes across the country fell by 23.36 percent in 2011 from the previous year. Official data from the PNP showed that crimes committed last year dropped significantly to 248,378 from 2010 figures of 324,083.
The PNP also noted that figures compiled last year represented only half of the 502,665 total recorded crimes in 2009.
Ochoa, who chairs the Cabinet Cluster on Security, Justice, and Peace and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC), commended the PNP for putting in place measures to curb crime, but enjoined the 140,000-strong police force to continue to pursue sustainable crime prevention and reduction strategies.
“Despite these successes, our police should continue to step up its anti-crime efforts and must remain on alert against all sorts of crime,” Ochoa said.
Ochoa added that law enforcers should be encouraged by the example of President Benigno S. Aquino III, who has shown that under the present government, “no one is above the law, and those who violate our laws will be held accountable for their crimes.”
Earlier, PNP spokesperson Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. said the declining crime rate can be credited to the “strict implementation of police integrated patrol system nationwide.
Cruz said the presence of police supervisors in barangays (villages) “resulted in resolution of petty crimes and close cooperation of the public and local government units.”
He also cited the PNP’s use of new technology like the “E-blotter and E-warrants, which resulted to more wanted persons jailed.”
The average monthly index crime rate also showed a decreasing trend: 27.52 in 2009, 18.10 in 2010, and 13.62 in 2011, the report said. (PCOO)
