President Aquino leads commemoration of 3rd
death anniversary of Cory
President Benigno S. Aquino III led the Aquino
and Cojuangco clans in commemorating the third death anniversary of his late
mother and former President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino who is buried, together
with husband and former Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, Jr. at the Manila
Memorial Park in Parañaque on Wednesday.
The President joined his sisters: Maria Elena,
Aurora Corazon, Victoria Eliza, and Kristina Bernadette, their respective
families and some 50 of their closest family and friends in a mass for the late
President which was officiated by Fr. Catalino Arevalo, SJ.
President Aquino’s official family represented
by Health Secretary Enrique Ona, Energy Secretary Jose Almendras, Social
Welfare and Development Secretary Corazon Soliman, Transportation and
Communication Secretary Manuel Roxas II, Communications Secretary Herminio
"Sonny" Coloma, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del Rosario, and
Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin were also present for the holy mass.
In his homily, Fr. Arevalo said the
commemoration of the death anniversary of the Philippines’ democracy icon was
not just a gathering of friends and family but a chance to pray that we, as
Filipinos, be given the same selfless love of country that the former President
and Senator had.
He said this commemoration may just afford all
of us, through the intercession of Senator Benigno and President Cory, a chance
to enkindle within us “a little bit of the love that they had for our country
and our people, not for themselves.”
“So I think our coming together is not an empty
ceremony. It’s a lighting of the fire again; it’s an enkindling of the fire in
our own hearts that we ask that through their prayers, now that they are with
the Lord, they may light up a fire in our hearts and give us something: a
little bit of the love that they had for our country and our people, not for
themselves,” Fr. Arevalo said.
“For themselves, it was a total gift that’s why
we honor them; that’s why our country will honor them for many, many years to
come. And we pray at this mass this morning that something of that passion,
something of that love may enter into us. That it may not be just a question of
words, it may be in some way really and truly also the giving of our lives,” he
added.
Former President Corazon Aquino passed away on
August 1, 2009 after a battle with colon cancer. (rck)
Aquino appoints new officials in Department of
Education, judges in various lower courts
President Benigno S. Aquino III has appointed
new officials in the Department of Education (DepEd) and judges in various
lower courts.
Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda
announced during the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday that
President Aquino signed the appointment letters of Gloria D. Benigno, Lorna D.
Dino and Sinforosa A. Guinares as Director IV in the Department of Education.
Lacierda said Benigno will replace Teresita G.
Domalanta while Dino will succeed Paraluman R. Giron. Guinares, on the other
hand, will replace Rose Marie Felicidad V. Saet.
The presidential appointees to the judiciary are
as follows:
- Judge Emelinda Ripalda Maquilan as presiding
judge of Carigara, Leyte Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 13.
- Judge Carlos O. Arguelles as presiding judge
of Baybay, Leyte Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 14.
- Judge Roselyn Corres Fallorina as presiding
judge of Villaba-Tabango, Leyte 11th Municipal Circuit Trial Court.
- Judge Rodrigo T. Eguia as presiding judge of
Talibon-Jetafe, Bohol 4th Municipal Circuit Trial Court (MCTC) and
- Judge Leticia Ban Trigue as presiding judge of
Binalbagan, Negros Occidental Municipal Trial Court (MTC). (js)
Malacanang bares government's vigorous campaign
against smuggling
Malacanang bared the Aquino administration’s
stepped-up efforts against smuggling to ensure more revenues for the government
as it commended the Bureau of Customs (BoC) for its unyielding initiatives to
curb the said illegal activity in the country.
In a regular press briefing in Malacanang on
Wednesday, Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said that President Benigno
S. Aquino III has directed BoC Commissioner Ruffy Biazon to curb the problem of
smuggling and go after the unscrupulous groups and individuals involved in the
illegal act.
“The instructions given by the President to
Commissioner Ruffy Biazon was to ensure that smuggling should stop and this is
another instance where the commissioner has stepped up to ensure that we exert
all efforts in curbing smuggling in this country,” Lacierda said.
Lacierda noted that the BoC also focuses its
efforts in other forms of smuggling such as technical smuggling.
“It is very well taken note that there were
smuggled rice in Subic and we certainly commend the efforts of Commissioner
Biazon in curbing smuggling there, and we note for instance that there are a
number of apprehensions that were made in the past few weeks, and we certainly
commend the stepped up efforts of Commissioner Biazon. Not only blatant
smuggling but also technical smuggling where you under-value your goods,”
Lacierda said.
“This robs the country of revenue, and therefore
the explicit instruction of the President for Commissioner Biazon is to ensure
that we curb smuggling... We are able to generate revenues as we curb
smuggling,” he said.
Meanwhile, Lacierda welcomed the investigations
being conducted by the Senate on the smuggling issue as he assured the
apprehension of those who will be proven involved in the said illegal
activities.
“We welcome the investigation of the Senate and
we hope that the whole investigation on rice smuggling be resolved to a
clearly-defined delineation of liability, and that’s what we’re after... we are
going against corrupt officials and so we will not brook on any corruption in
our government,” Lacierda said.
Reports revealed the BoC’s formal seizure of
what it calls its “biggest smuggled rice haul” with some 420,000, 50-kilogram
bags of Indian white rice that were abandoned in Subic, early April.
Upon inspection, the BoC said that the haul has
an estimated market value of P450 million.
Commissioner Biazon made sure that the
government would “never allow unscrupulous traders to exploit the privileges
offered by the country’s various free port zones like the Port of Subic to be
their staging points for smuggling.” (jcl/2:30 p.m.)
Law must be strictly enforced to protect
students from hazing, says Malacanang
The law must be strictly implemented to protect
students from fraternity hazing and violators must be brought to justice, a
Palace official said on Wednesday.
“The law should be strictly implemented. The law
should be upheld at all times. Those people who did the heinous act must be
prosecuted. And if they are apprehended, (they) should be prosecuted to the
fullest extent of the law,” Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a
press briefing in Malacanang.
Lacierda was reacting to questions fielded to
him by Malacanang reporters about the death of a freshman law student of San
Beda College in a farm in Dasmariñas City apparently the result of fraternity
hazing incident.
Lacierda said it is the responsibility of the
universities and colleges to ensure the safety for their students particularly
against violent activities such as hazing.
“Meron tayong doctrine na 'parens patriae' — ang
tawag sa Civil Law. Responsibilidad ng mga eskwelahan ang asikasuhin ang
kanilang mga mag-aaral, mga estudyante. That is a general principle,” Lacierda
said.
Mark Andrei Marcos was the latest fatality in what
authorities said was an apparent case of fraternity hazing. Five months ago
another San Beda law student, Marvin Reglos, succumbed to injuries in a
fraternity hazing incident.
Police said Marcos, 21, was brought to the De La
Salle University Medical Center in Dasmariñas City, at 10:30 p.m. on Sunday. He
was pronounced dead on Monday.
Several groups condemned the killing of Marcos
and called on the authorities to act swiftly to bring the perpetrators of the
heinous crime to justice. (as/2:38pm)
Aquino to keynote General Meeting of Electric
Cooperatives in Pasay City Thursday
President Benigno S. Aquino III will keynote the
33rd Annual General Membership Meeting of the Philippine Rural Electric
Cooperatives Association, Incorporated (PHILRECA) that will be held at the
Philippine Trade Training Center (PTTC) in Pasay City on Thursday.
Joining the President during the event will be
Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras and PHILRECA president Wilfred Villena.
Formerly known as Federation of Electric Cooperatives
of the Philippines, PHILRECA is the apex organization of 119 electric
cooperatives operating across the archipelago.
It was organized in July 1979 as a non-stock,
non-profit, and non-political organization, and registered with the National
Electrification Administration, the government agency tasked with implementing
the rural electrification program.
As a private entity, PHILRECA was registered
with the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission in September 1988. (rck)
Malacanang says Congress’ nod on RH Bill will be
good for the country
The support of lawmakers for the Responsible
Parenthood Bill would mean a nod on the future of the country, a Palace
official said on Wednesday.
In a media briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday,
Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the administration hopes that
lawmakers would support the position taken by the President regarding the
Responsible
Parenthood Bill.
“The President has made his statements and he
has made a consistent statement on his five-point responsible parenthood
position. And I think the congressmen are well aware of the position taken by
the President,” Lacierda said.
Asked by reporters if the palace believes next
year’s poll would be a crucial factor for lawmakers to back or trash the bill,
Lacierda said the issue is not about the 2013 election but for the future of
the country.
A recent survey said the majority of the public
support the bill, raising the prospects that politicians not backing the
Responsible Parenthood Bill also wouldn’t get the support voters.
“It should be a vote on the future of our
country and the future of the children that we bring into the world. What kind
of support, what kind of decent life can you bring if you have too many
children that you have brought into this world without the means to support
them?” Lacierda asked.
“This is about having productive citizens. This
is not about voting and being reelected in 2013. I hope the congressmen realize
that this is a vote on the future of our nation.”
The Catholic Church claimed that they have 140
votes or congressmen voting against the RH Bill. Lawmakers will be deciding
next week to close the period of amendments for the bill.
The President has advocated for a responsible
parenthood proposal to give the people proper information regarding family
planning so they
could arrive at better decisions on the size of
their families, Lacierda said.
Young people in poor communities having frequent
pregnancies raise the urgency to come up with a Responsible Parenthood Bill,
the Palace spokesman said.
But Lacierda added that while the President
backs the proposal, the Church shouldn’t worry because their inputs were
included in the Responsible Parenthood Bill.
“Just to remind our Catholic bishops, the
Responsible Parenthood Bill that the President introduced, or that the
administration introduced, took into consideration the concerns of the
bishops,” he said.
“There were certain issues that they raised. And
those were studied by the administration and they were incorporated into the
Responsible Parenthood Bill. I hope the bishops do realize that their concerns
were noted by the President when we introduced the Responsible Parenthood Bill
to Congress,” he added. (as/4:43pm)
