Aquino vows to heighten fight against illegal logging
BALER, Aurora: President Benigno S. Aquino III said the government needs to step up the fight against illegal logging activities particularly after the murder of a Department of Environment and Natural Resources forest personnel in Cagayan.
“Ang focus natin doon… may forestry guard na kakapatay doon sa mismong opisina niya. So ito ho ang pino-point out ng Secretary ng ating DENR na kailangan na talagang matugunan, ang illegal logging,” the President said in an interview during the inauguration of the Aurora Memorial Hospital here.
“Nagkakaroon na ng karahasan laban sa ating mga nagbabantay ng kagubatan at yun ang huhulihin natin sa lalong madaling panahon at dadalhin sa korte. Pero, other than that, i-improve pa natin ang proseso,” he added.
The government has to augment the resources for the government’s task force against illegal logging to finally stop illegal logging activities in the Sierra Madre mountain range, the President said when he was asked by local reporters.
Last week, Melania Dirain, 46, the DENR forest specialist in Sanchez Mira, was attacked in her office. She died of five gunshot wounds in the chest. A forest specialist is the second highest-ranking officer in a community environment and natural resources office (Cenro). Her main task is enforcement of forest protection laws.
The President was in Aurora province Sunday to attend the 33rd foundation anniversary of the province. He also inaugurated the Aurora Memorial Hospital here in Baler. (PCOO)
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Aquino swears in new Solicitor General
President Benigno S. Aquino III administered the oath of office of newly- appointed Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza in ceremonies held in Malacañang on Monday.
Jardeleza, the Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon, replaced Jose Cadiz who resigned earlier this month.
Prior to his stint at the Office of the Ombudsman, Jardeleza served as senior vice-president and general counsel of San Miguel Corporation (SMC).
Aside from Jardeleza, the President also formally swore in Manuel Mamba as Presidential Adviser on Legislative Affairs.
Mamba, a former congressman of Cagayan province, replaced former Presidential Legislative Liaison Office chief Antonino Roman.
The President also presided over a mass oathtaking ceremony involving 35 newly appointed government officials and 71 promoted officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police. (PCOO)
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Coloma underscores potent tools used by Aquino government in achieving United Nations Millennium Development Goals
Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio “Sonny” B. Coloma Jr. underscored the potent tools being used by the Aquino government to achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goals and in preparing the younger generations to be more equipped and competitive citizens of the nation.
Speaking before the participants in the “Learning for Change: Preschool Teacher Training for Southeast Asia to Promote the Benefits of Education for Sustainable Development” at the National Institute for Science and Mathematics Education (NISMED) of the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman Campus in Quezon City on Monday, Coloma underscored the importance of early childhood education as a process in preparation for lifelong learning.
“Indeed, life-long learning starts at early childhood… the values that shape who we are and who we will become are learned in kindergarten or in pre-school, this is why the benefits of this training workshop could be potentially wide-ranging and far-reaching for each of the participants and their respective countries,” Coloma said.
“This learning event comes at a time when our country is purposively implementing the K to 12 program, that is designed to enhance our global competitiveness… as an initial step we have implemented compulsory kindergarten education to jumpstart every child’s journey of learning,” he added.
“This is a defining moment in our care for five-year old children and will surely have a significant impact in achieving the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education,” Coloma further said.
The PCOO chief said that based on several studies, pre-school education proved to be an effective tool in conditioning the young students to be more focused to their studies.
“Studies showed that a child’s going through pre-school resulted in better learning competencies to prepare him or her for entering grade one, studies have also showed that children unprepared for learning in grade one were prone to drop out eventually,” Coloma said.
Apart from the K to 12 program or the Enhanced Basic Education Reform Program of the Aquino government, which seeks to produce high school graduates who are equipped with skills for the world of work, have better needed competencies for college education and ready for global opportunities, Coloma said that the government is also prioritizing the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program not only to provide financial assistance to the less privileged Filipino families but also ensure that their children attends school regularly.
The CCT program under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) also sees to it that poor families have sufficient quality health care.
“In our country out of every one hundred students that started in Grade One only 33 will go on to high school, the extremely high drop-out rates are rooted in poverty and hunger… this is also the reason why our President Benigno S. Aquino III has prioritized a program of Conditional Cash Transfers to the poorest families in our country,” Coloma said.
“This program aims to encourage and enable children from these families to overcome the economic hurdles to obtaining basic education,” he added.
The training workshop is a capability-building initiative designed to enrich the knowledge and competencies of early childhood development workers in order to help achieve the goals of the UNESCO Southeast Asian Center for Lifelong Learning for Sustainable Development (SEA-CLLSD) to be a service provider, standard shelter and a research/resource management center in the field of lifelong learning for sustainable development in Southeast Asia.
The said training program aims to serve as venue for sharing country experiences on early childhood education in the following countries: Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR), Myanmar and the Philippines; to enable the participants to gain a thorough understanding of the importance of early childhood education in lifelong learning for sustainable development; to enrich the participants’ knowledge on the child’s developmental milestones, developmentally appropriate practices on early childhood education and theories and principles of child development; to visit early childhood development initiatives that show innovative practices and to explore areas of collaboration on early childhood among institutions in the four participating countries.
There were 15 participants, two each from the countries of Cambodia, Lao-PDR and Myanmar while nine were from the Philippines. The participants were teachers and early childhood care and development workers in day-care centers. (PCOO)
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Aquino declares March 2 as special non-working day in La Union in celebration of its 162nd Foundation Day
President Benigno S. Aquino III has declared March 2, 2012 which falls on a Friday as a special non-working day in the province of La Union in celebration of the 162nd Foundation Day of the province.
In Proclamation No. 334 signed by Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on February 13, the President issued the declaration to give the people the full opportunity to celebrate and participate in the occasion with appropriate ceremonies.
The province was created in 1850 when the Spanish colonial government of Governor-General Antonio Maria Blanco merged the southern towns of Ilocos Sur province, the northern towns of Pangasinan, and the western towns of Benguet to the east.
The name La Union indicates the union of towns from different provinces. (PCOO)
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Government sets up road dike in Lupang Arenda, Taytay, Rizal to keep residents safe
The Aquino government has already set up a road dike to minimize or prevent further liquefaction in some areas of Lupang Arenda in Taytay, Rizal to keep the residents safe from disaster a Palace official said on Monday.
Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda issued the statement during the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Monday in response to reports that the entire 270-hectare Lupang Arenda in Taytay, Rizal, is unsafe for human settlement because of liquefaction.
Lupang Arenda was established when former President Fidel V. Ramos issued Proclamation 704 and opened some 200 hectares of public lands in protected wetlands to accommodate the growing number of illegal settlers in Metro Manila. The settlement lies along the shorelines of Laguna de Bay and the natural lake water egress to Manila Bay along the Napindan Channel.
"After Ondoy, former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo issued an Executive Order (EO) ordering the relocation of the families in Lupang Arenda. By that time there were already 50 thousand families occupying Lupang Arenda," Lacierda said.
"The DENR has assessed and continues to assess Lupang Arenda, as some parts of Lupang Arenda were not suffering from liquefaction. What we have done thus far is to set up a road dike to minimize or prevent further liquefaction," he stressed.
Lacierda said that there are on-going studies on Lupang Arenda to determine whether the site is safe or not for human settlement.
"The administration is fully aware of the situation in Lupang Arenda and once we have the final decision made, we will inform the public. And yes, we are very much concerned about avoiding another disaster in any area," he said. (PCOO)
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Aquino orders Energy department to reload P1,200 each Pantawid Pasada card holder's account to cushion impact on rising fuel prices
President Benigno S. Aquino III directed the Department of Energy (DOE) to reload each Pantawid Pasada Program card holder’s account by P1,200 to cushion the impact of rising fuel prices.
"Inatasan po ni Presidente Aquino ang DOE na magbigay ng 1,200 pesos reload para sa isandaang libong benepisyaryo ng Pantawid Pasada Program. Para po ito maibsan ang epekto ng napipintong pagtataas ng presyo ng langis na mangyayari ngayong gabi," Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said during the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Monday.
The government’s Pantawid Pasada program was created to provide subsidy to the public transport sector with the increases in the prices of oil products.
Lacierda said DOE will start distributing the said cards to public utility vehicles (PUV) drivers who are beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pasada program.
He also announced that the beneficiaries can also avail of discounts in purchasing tires, batteries and other spare parts.
"Sa tulong din po ng Office of Transport Cooperatives sa ilalim ng DOTC (Department of Transporation and Communications) at ng Philippine International Trading Corporation sa ilalim ng Department of Trade and Industry, pinatibay ang ugnayan sa pagitan ng mga kooperatiba at manufacturer ng gulong, baterya, at iba pang spare parts," Lacierda said.
The government also started implementing measures to lower the prices of tires, batteries and other spare parts in a bid to help the transport sector cope with the rising fuel prices.
"Maaari pong makakuha ng tax exemption ang mga coop, maliban pa sa dealers' discount; direkta nitong mapapamura ang gastusin para sa maintenance ng mga sasakyan ng ating mga operator at tsuper ng jeep, bus, AUV, at taxi. Bukas po mismo ay maghaharap na ang mga kooperatiba at manufacturer upang magsimula ng pag-order ng mga kagamitan," he said.
"Nagmamahal ang presyo ng langis dahil lumalakas din ang pag-angkat ng mga bansa sa Europa, kung saan mayroong di inaasahang taglamig sa mga panahong ito. Hindi rin nakatulong ang tensyon sa pagitan ng Iran at ilang Kanluraning bansa," he said.
Lacierda assured that the Aquino government will continue framing measures to ease the burden of the transport sector. (PCOO)
BALER, Aurora: President Benigno S. Aquino III said the government needs to step up the fight against illegal logging activities particularly after the murder of a Department of Environment and Natural Resources forest personnel in Cagayan.
“Ang focus natin doon… may forestry guard na kakapatay doon sa mismong opisina niya. So ito ho ang pino-point out ng Secretary ng ating DENR na kailangan na talagang matugunan, ang illegal logging,” the President said in an interview during the inauguration of the Aurora Memorial Hospital here.
“Nagkakaroon na ng karahasan laban sa ating mga nagbabantay ng kagubatan at yun ang huhulihin natin sa lalong madaling panahon at dadalhin sa korte. Pero, other than that, i-improve pa natin ang proseso,” he added.
The government has to augment the resources for the government’s task force against illegal logging to finally stop illegal logging activities in the Sierra Madre mountain range, the President said when he was asked by local reporters.
Last week, Melania Dirain, 46, the DENR forest specialist in Sanchez Mira, was attacked in her office. She died of five gunshot wounds in the chest. A forest specialist is the second highest-ranking officer in a community environment and natural resources office (Cenro). Her main task is enforcement of forest protection laws.
The President was in Aurora province Sunday to attend the 33rd foundation anniversary of the province. He also inaugurated the Aurora Memorial Hospital here in Baler. (PCOO)
.
Aquino swears in new Solicitor General
President Benigno S. Aquino III administered the oath of office of newly- appointed Solicitor General Francis Jardeleza in ceremonies held in Malacañang on Monday.
Jardeleza, the Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon, replaced Jose Cadiz who resigned earlier this month.
Prior to his stint at the Office of the Ombudsman, Jardeleza served as senior vice-president and general counsel of San Miguel Corporation (SMC).
Aside from Jardeleza, the President also formally swore in Manuel Mamba as Presidential Adviser on Legislative Affairs.
Mamba, a former congressman of Cagayan province, replaced former Presidential Legislative Liaison Office chief Antonino Roman.
The President also presided over a mass oathtaking ceremony involving 35 newly appointed government officials and 71 promoted officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police. (PCOO)
.
Coloma underscores potent tools used by Aquino government in achieving United Nations Millennium Development Goals
Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio “Sonny” B. Coloma Jr. underscored the potent tools being used by the Aquino government to achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goals and in preparing the younger generations to be more equipped and competitive citizens of the nation.
Speaking before the participants in the “Learning for Change: Preschool Teacher Training for Southeast Asia to Promote the Benefits of Education for Sustainable Development” at the National Institute for Science and Mathematics Education (NISMED) of the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman Campus in Quezon City on Monday, Coloma underscored the importance of early childhood education as a process in preparation for lifelong learning.
“Indeed, life-long learning starts at early childhood… the values that shape who we are and who we will become are learned in kindergarten or in pre-school, this is why the benefits of this training workshop could be potentially wide-ranging and far-reaching for each of the participants and their respective countries,” Coloma said.
“This learning event comes at a time when our country is purposively implementing the K to 12 program, that is designed to enhance our global competitiveness… as an initial step we have implemented compulsory kindergarten education to jumpstart every child’s journey of learning,” he added.
“This is a defining moment in our care for five-year old children and will surely have a significant impact in achieving the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education,” Coloma further said.
The PCOO chief said that based on several studies, pre-school education proved to be an effective tool in conditioning the young students to be more focused to their studies.
“Studies showed that a child’s going through pre-school resulted in better learning competencies to prepare him or her for entering grade one, studies have also showed that children unprepared for learning in grade one were prone to drop out eventually,” Coloma said.
Apart from the K to 12 program or the Enhanced Basic Education Reform Program of the Aquino government, which seeks to produce high school graduates who are equipped with skills for the world of work, have better needed competencies for college education and ready for global opportunities, Coloma said that the government is also prioritizing the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program not only to provide financial assistance to the less privileged Filipino families but also ensure that their children attends school regularly.
The CCT program under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) also sees to it that poor families have sufficient quality health care.
“In our country out of every one hundred students that started in Grade One only 33 will go on to high school, the extremely high drop-out rates are rooted in poverty and hunger… this is also the reason why our President Benigno S. Aquino III has prioritized a program of Conditional Cash Transfers to the poorest families in our country,” Coloma said.
“This program aims to encourage and enable children from these families to overcome the economic hurdles to obtaining basic education,” he added.
The training workshop is a capability-building initiative designed to enrich the knowledge and competencies of early childhood development workers in order to help achieve the goals of the UNESCO Southeast Asian Center for Lifelong Learning for Sustainable Development (SEA-CLLSD) to be a service provider, standard shelter and a research/resource management center in the field of lifelong learning for sustainable development in Southeast Asia.
The said training program aims to serve as venue for sharing country experiences on early childhood education in the following countries: Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR), Myanmar and the Philippines; to enable the participants to gain a thorough understanding of the importance of early childhood education in lifelong learning for sustainable development; to enrich the participants’ knowledge on the child’s developmental milestones, developmentally appropriate practices on early childhood education and theories and principles of child development; to visit early childhood development initiatives that show innovative practices and to explore areas of collaboration on early childhood among institutions in the four participating countries.
There were 15 participants, two each from the countries of Cambodia, Lao-PDR and Myanmar while nine were from the Philippines. The participants were teachers and early childhood care and development workers in day-care centers. (PCOO)
.
Aquino declares March 2 as special non-working day in La Union in celebration of its 162nd Foundation Day
President Benigno S. Aquino III has declared March 2, 2012 which falls on a Friday as a special non-working day in the province of La Union in celebration of the 162nd Foundation Day of the province.
In Proclamation No. 334 signed by Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on February 13, the President issued the declaration to give the people the full opportunity to celebrate and participate in the occasion with appropriate ceremonies.
The province was created in 1850 when the Spanish colonial government of Governor-General Antonio Maria Blanco merged the southern towns of Ilocos Sur province, the northern towns of Pangasinan, and the western towns of Benguet to the east.
The name La Union indicates the union of towns from different provinces. (PCOO)
.
Government sets up road dike in Lupang Arenda, Taytay, Rizal to keep residents safe
The Aquino government has already set up a road dike to minimize or prevent further liquefaction in some areas of Lupang Arenda in Taytay, Rizal to keep the residents safe from disaster a Palace official said on Monday.
Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda issued the statement during the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Monday in response to reports that the entire 270-hectare Lupang Arenda in Taytay, Rizal, is unsafe for human settlement because of liquefaction.
Lupang Arenda was established when former President Fidel V. Ramos issued Proclamation 704 and opened some 200 hectares of public lands in protected wetlands to accommodate the growing number of illegal settlers in Metro Manila. The settlement lies along the shorelines of Laguna de Bay and the natural lake water egress to Manila Bay along the Napindan Channel.
"After Ondoy, former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo issued an Executive Order (EO) ordering the relocation of the families in Lupang Arenda. By that time there were already 50 thousand families occupying Lupang Arenda," Lacierda said.
"The DENR has assessed and continues to assess Lupang Arenda, as some parts of Lupang Arenda were not suffering from liquefaction. What we have done thus far is to set up a road dike to minimize or prevent further liquefaction," he stressed.
Lacierda said that there are on-going studies on Lupang Arenda to determine whether the site is safe or not for human settlement.
"The administration is fully aware of the situation in Lupang Arenda and once we have the final decision made, we will inform the public. And yes, we are very much concerned about avoiding another disaster in any area," he said. (PCOO)
.
Aquino orders Energy department to reload P1,200 each Pantawid Pasada card holder's account to cushion impact on rising fuel prices
President Benigno S. Aquino III directed the Department of Energy (DOE) to reload each Pantawid Pasada Program card holder’s account by P1,200 to cushion the impact of rising fuel prices.
"Inatasan po ni Presidente Aquino ang DOE na magbigay ng 1,200 pesos reload para sa isandaang libong benepisyaryo ng Pantawid Pasada Program. Para po ito maibsan ang epekto ng napipintong pagtataas ng presyo ng langis na mangyayari ngayong gabi," Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said during the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Monday.
The government’s Pantawid Pasada program was created to provide subsidy to the public transport sector with the increases in the prices of oil products.
Lacierda said DOE will start distributing the said cards to public utility vehicles (PUV) drivers who are beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pasada program.
He also announced that the beneficiaries can also avail of discounts in purchasing tires, batteries and other spare parts.
"Sa tulong din po ng Office of Transport Cooperatives sa ilalim ng DOTC (Department of Transporation and Communications) at ng Philippine International Trading Corporation sa ilalim ng Department of Trade and Industry, pinatibay ang ugnayan sa pagitan ng mga kooperatiba at manufacturer ng gulong, baterya, at iba pang spare parts," Lacierda said.
The government also started implementing measures to lower the prices of tires, batteries and other spare parts in a bid to help the transport sector cope with the rising fuel prices.
"Maaari pong makakuha ng tax exemption ang mga coop, maliban pa sa dealers' discount; direkta nitong mapapamura ang gastusin para sa maintenance ng mga sasakyan ng ating mga operator at tsuper ng jeep, bus, AUV, at taxi. Bukas po mismo ay maghaharap na ang mga kooperatiba at manufacturer upang magsimula ng pag-order ng mga kagamitan," he said.
"Nagmamahal ang presyo ng langis dahil lumalakas din ang pag-angkat ng mga bansa sa Europa, kung saan mayroong di inaasahang taglamig sa mga panahong ito. Hindi rin nakatulong ang tensyon sa pagitan ng Iran at ilang Kanluraning bansa," he said.
Lacierda assured that the Aquino government will continue framing measures to ease the burden of the transport sector. (PCOO)
