President Aquino declares January 15 as special
non-working day in San Pablo, Laguna in celebration of 18th coconut festival
President
Benigno S. Aquino III has declared January 15, which falls on a Tuesday, as a
special (non-working) day in the city of San Pablo in the province of Laguna in
celebration of its 18th Coconut Festival and Street Dancing Competition (Mardi
Gras).
The Chief
Executive issued the declaration through Proclamation No. 527 signed by
Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on December 14 to give the people of
the city of San Pablo the full opportunity to celebrate and participate in the
occasion with appropriate ceremonies.
San Pablo
celebrates the Coconut Festival every January 15 in honor of the city's patron
Saint Paul the Hermit. The festival, which consists of street dancing, float
parade and street concerts, boosts the culture and traditions of San Pablenos.
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Malacanang says Aquino government remains
committed to recover ill-gotten wealth of Marcoses and cronies
The
Aquino administration remains committed to recover the ill-gotten wealth of the
family and cronies of the late President Ferdinand Marcos and pursue pending
cases of graft and corruption in the event Congress decides to abolish the
Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), a Palace official said on
Wednesday.
Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said
during the regular press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday that the PCGG will
turn-over the pending cases to the Department of Justice (DOJ) in the event
that the commission is abolished.
"So
tuloy pa po ang mandato—kung hindi sa PCGG, tuloy pa rin po ‘yung pagtugis doon
sa mga ill-gotten wealth cases na pending ngayon. If the office is abolished by
Congress, it does not mean the ill-gotten wealth cases will die," Lacierda
said.
PCGG
Chair Andres Bautista had proposed to Malacañang in late December 2010 the
abolition of the PCGG and its transformation into an Institute for Good
Governance.
"There has been no discussion yet on
that—on the final decision of the President—but it will be discussed with the
President. Principally, this report would show as early as 2011 that they
intended (or) at least Chairman Andres Bautista intended PCGG to be eventually
functus officio, to cease to be an office, and so they outlined the process of
transition," Lacierda said.
"Yung winding down of operations nila is
one of their recommendations and this is just a recommendation which we have
not discussed yet. And the assets—to show that they have substantial number of
assets that they were able to recover—were going to be turned over to the
Department of Finance," Lacierda said.
Under the
Aquino administration, the PCGG performed strongly in its pursuit to return to
the public treasury the ill-gotten wealth accumulated during the time of former
President Marcos. The PCGG also proposed safeguards to prevent the occurrence
of corruption.
"Marami rin silang na-recover na
ill-gotten wealth. That’s why we would like to invite you to look at the report
itself (posted in the PCGG official website). It shows the achievements,
accomplishments (of PCGG) up to until 2011," he said.
"In
fact, we have seen the recent case in New York where the former secretary of
the former First Lady was prevented from selling some very expensive paintings
and which now, I think, PCGG was made a witness to that particular case,"
he said.
The PCGG
was created by the late President Corazon C. Aquino in 1986 to recover
ill-gotten wealth said to have been accumulated during the Marcos regime. PND
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Palace says it remains committed to negotiating
peace with communist rebels
Malacanang said the government remains
committed to seeking peace with the communist rebels despite their decision to
cut short the ceasefire declared for the Christmas and New Year.
“We
remain committed to pursuing peace in all fronts. We have seen that. We have
proven our sincerity with the MILF. We are prepared to seek peace with
CPP-NPA-NDF (Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National
Democratic Front),” Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a press
briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday.
The rebel
group cut short its declared ceasefire with the government. Instead of January
15, ceasefire ended effectively Wednesday. The communist insurgents declared
their traditional Yuletide truce starting from December 20, 2012 to January 15,
2013.
The
CPP-NPA-NDF said it had shortened the duration of the ceasefire because
President Benigno S. Aquino III failed to issue a reciprocal declaration
indicating said ceasefire would end on January 15.
But
Lacierda said it wasn’t the case. He noted that in the joint statement where
Secretary Ronald Llamas represented the government in Norway it clearly showed
that the government had intended to respect the ceasefire.
The Armed
Forces of the Philippines (AFP) was informed of the ceasefire so there was no
reason for the CPP-NPA-NDF to allege that the government wasn’t sincere in
observing the ceasefire, Lacierda said.
The
non-issuance of a presidential directive did not mean that the government
wouldn’t honor the ceasefire Lacierda said adding that the government was
committed to the ceasefire and that was the reason why Secretary Teresita
Deles, the President’s peace adviser, was very optimistic in her statement
about peace with the rebels.
“The one
proof that we were cognizant of that ceasefire is that we published it on the
www.gov.ph., our official website. When we learned about the ceasefire, we
immediately relayed it to the AFP, we relayed it to media and we relayed it to
the public. That is the extent of our sincerity. We had no reason not to honor
the ceasefire,” he said.
“We knew
that the ceasefire would be good for the rebels because it would be an
opportunity for the CPP-NPA-NDF rebels to come down from the mountains to be
with their families. By ending the ceasefire earlier, they have cut short the
time the rebels can spend with their families. It is unfortunate,” he added.
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Aquino government joins nation in mourning the
death of 7-year-old girl hit by stray bullet on New Year's Eve
The
Aquino administration joined the nation in grieving for the death of a
seven-year-old girl who was hit by a stray bullet on New Year's Eve, a Palace
official said.
"Today, our nation comes together in
grief. Stephanie Nicole Ella has passed away. She was only seven years old when
she suffered a fatal head injury after being hit by a stray bullet on New
Year’s Eve," Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said in a statement
issued on Wednesday.
"Together with the Filipino people, we
extend our deepest sympathies to Stephanie’s family. No one should experience
the overwhelming heartbreak that her family is now enduring, especially during
a season of celebration and hope," Lacierda said.
Ella died
at the East Avenue Medical Center in Quezon City on Wednesday afternoon.
The girl
was watching a fireworks display outside her home in Malaria district, Caloocan
City when she was hit by a stray bullet in her head. She was immediately rushed
to the hospital by her family.
"This tragedy is a sobering reminder of
how a reprehensible act from a thoughtless individual can rob our people,
particularly our children, of their futures. For such a promising life to be
lost in such a senseless way puts the burden on all of us to make certain that
this tragedy is not repeated," Lacierda stressed.
The
Aquino government continues to call on all Filipinos to consider the welfare of
fellow countrymen by engaging in celebrations in a responsible and safe manner.
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