President Aquino assures Manileños of continued
support
President Benigno S. Aquino III assured the
local government of Manila of his government’s utmost and continued support as
the LGU, under the helm of Mayor Alfredo Lim, works to provide the basic needs
and livelihood of its constituents.
The President gave the assurance in his speech
during the proclamation rally of Liberal Party candidates held at the Bonifacio
Shrine in Manila on Monday.
He said it was a fitting tribute to Lim who,
since his time as Chief of Police in Manila in 1986, has been a strong and
long-standing ally and leader to the people of Manila, whose welfare has been
his topmost priority.
“Malinaw po, noong EDSA, at pagkatapos man ng
EDSA, tapat na lingkod-bayan si Mayor Lim, lalong-lalo na para sa Maynila.
Biruin ninyo, ang pinaplano pa lang natin noong universal healthcare, matagal
na po niyang isinasakatuparan sa Maynila. Hindi lang po siya nagpatayo ng mga
ospital, barangay health centers at mga klinika, ginawa pa niyang libre ang
pagpapagamot ng mga maralita nating kababayan,” the President said.
“Dagdag pa sa serbisyong-medikal, pursigido rin
si Mayor Lim sa pagpapagawa ng mga silid-aralan, at tinitiyak din niyang
nakakatamasa ng libreng edukasyon mula elementarya hanggang kolehiyo ang mga
mahihirap na kabataan. Bukod pa sa libreng pagpapagamot at edukasyon, doble
kayod din po si Mayor Lim sa pagsisiguro ng kaligtasan at maginhawang pamumuhay
ng mga Manileño,” he addded.
The President lauded Lim for joining government
efforts to provide homes for the marginalized sector and keep residents safe
from harm through the launch of the centralized disaster evacuation center
“upang ilayo sila sa mga lugar na malapit sa kapahamakan.”
“Nito ring Pebrero, pinasinayaan ang bagong
tayong centralized disaster evacuation center sa Tondo na malilikasan ng
tatlong libo nating kababayang naninirahan sa mga peligrosong lugar tulad ng
Parola 1 at 2, Smokey Mountain, Isla Puting Bato, at Happyland. Kaugnay nito,
bilang bahagi ng master plan natin para sa epektibong pagkontrol ng baha, isinasaayos
na natin ang daluyan ng tubig sa iba’t ibang lugar sa Maynila gaya ng sa Tondo,
Sta. Ana, Sta. Cruz, Sta. Mesa, Ermita, Sampaloc, at Pandacan,” he said.
“Sa lahat po ng nabanggit na proyekto, makakaasa
kayong hindi nag-iisa si Mayor Lim sa pagsasakatuparan nito. Sa lahat ng mga
tagumpay na ito, talagang napapaisip tayo ---sulit po talagang magpaseminar
tayo kay Mayor Lim dahil sa husay niyang mamuno,” he said.
“Kaya nga po, basta’t sinabi po ni Mayor Lim,
hindi po tayo mag-aatubiling suportahan, dahil tiwala tayong makakabuti ito sa
mas nakakarami. Kaya nga po, dahil tiwala ako kay Mayor Lim, anuman ang hindi
niya kayanin, ako na po mismo ang gagawa ng paraan para isakatuparan ang hindi
niya makakaya. Kasangga natin si Mayor Lim sa bawat hakbang; kasangga tayo ng
Maynila sa tuwid na daan,” the President said.
“…sa pamumuno ni Mayor Lim sa Maynila, hindi po
tayo kailanman nahirapan na makipag-ugnayan sa kanya, at nangunguna po siya sa
paglilingkod sa ating mga kababayan. Anuman pong oras, basta’t nariyan si Mayor
Lim, makakaasa tayo sa mabilis na pagtugon sa pangangailangan ng mga Manileño,
at sulit na sulit po ang sebisyo’t benepisyong naihahatid sa Maynila,” he
concluded. PND (rck)
Aquino leads the nation in commemorating the
225th birth anniversary of poet Francisco Baltazar
President Benigno S. Aquino III led on Tuesday
the Filipino nation in commemorating the 225th birth anniversary of prominent
poet and orator Francisco "Balagtas" Baltazar.
"Sa paggunita sa kaarawan at buhay ng
dakilang makata at bayaning si Francisco Balagtas Baltazar, nagbibigay-pugay
tayo sa naratibo ng ating pagka-Pilipino. Nakapaloob sa kanyang mga talinghaga
ang diwang makabayan, na siyang nagpaalab ng pambansang pagkakakilanlan, at
nagpunla ng damdaming nagbunga ng kasarinlan," the Chief Executive said in
his message to the Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino on the celebration of the 225th
birth anniversary of Balagtas.
President Aquino urged Filipinos to emulate the
good qualities and hard work of Balagtas in helping the government to transform
the country into a progressive nation.
"Sa kanyang mga nilikhang tauhan, higit pa
nating nakikilala ang ating mga sarili, at ang kahulugan ng pagiging makatao.
Nawa’y manatili tayong handang tumugon sa tawag ng pagkabayani sa ating
sariling paraan, nang mapabilis pa ang ating pagtunton sa daang matuwid,"
the President said.
"Nagsisimula na tayong makalaya sa
mapanglaw na gubat ng karukhaan at kamangmangan. Gamit ang mga bagong patnubay
ng katotohanan at katarungan, sumasaibayo na tayo sa kurapsyon ng kahapon, at
pumapanday na tayo ng bayang kinikilala ng buong mundo," he noted.
He also called on Filipinos to work with his
administration in pushing reforms for the country's development and progress.
"Sama-sama nating ipagpatuloy ang pagsulong
ng Pilipinas, tungo sa lalo pang maliwanag, lalo pang masagana, at lalo pang
makatarungang lipunan," he said.
Known by his pen name Balagtas, Baltazar has
been described as the “Prince of Tagalog Poets."
Baltazar was born in Panginay, Bigaa (now
Balagtas), Bulacan on April 2, 1788. He was the youngest of the four children
of Juan Baltazar, a blacksmith, and Juana de la Cruz.
Baltazar is widely considered as the Tagalog
equivalent of William Shakespeare for his impact on Filipino literature. The
famous epic, Florante at Laura, is regarded as his defining work. In 1840, he
moved to Bataan where he met Juana Tiambeng who eventually became his wife. He
died on February 20, 1862. PND (js)
Palace: Enough measures in place to fight oil
products smuggling
Malacanang made an assurance on Tuesday that
there are sufficient measures to curb oil smuggling in the country.
In a press conference in Malacanang on Tuesday,
Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said that among the measures in place
include a tax regulation that ensures ecozone locators get the tax exemption.
This in addition to the visits and inspections
being done by the Department of Finance (DOF), the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and
the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), he said.
Lacierda was referring to the Revenue Regulation
2-2012 that would have made sure that the ecozone locators would get tax
exemptions from the government.
Unfortunately, the court issued a temporary
restraining order (TRO) and it was only last February when an injunction was
issued declaring it to be in error, Lacierda explained.
Following the Court of Appeals decision, the
Bureau of Customs has begun full implementation of RR 2-2012, he added.
“As I mentioned, apart from this Revenue
Regulation 2-2012, we have stepped up on major physical visitation on those
ports—ports which are considered as the ports where the oil imports are being
done,” Lacierda said.
“We’re making sure that all these ports are
visited and that efforts are made to curb smuggling.”
Curbing oil smuggling will improve the country’s
tax collection, according to the Palace official.
One of the seven major ports already visited by
the DOF, BOC, and the BIR last February include the Port of Limay, Lacierda
said.
Beginning this month, the DOF, BOC and the BIR
will be visiting the Manila International Container Port, the Port of Manila, Port
of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, and the Port of Batangas, and other
major oil importers.
Ramon Ang, the chair and chief executive officer
of the Petron Corp. said at least a third of the total volume of oil products
sold in the market came from smuggling based on studies from 2007 to 2011.
Ang said the government is losing P30 to P40
billion annually due to oil products smuggling. PND (as)
Malacanang expresses elation over latest Social
Weather Stations survey indicating 81% of Filipinos are satisfied with their
lives
Malacanang expressed elation over the latest
Social Weather Stations' survey showing that 4 out of 5 Filipinos or 81 percent
are satisfied with their lives, a Palace official said on Tuesday.
The Aquino administration thanks the Filipinos
for their overwhelming trust, confidence, and support in the government,
Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said during the regular press briefing
in Malacanang on Tuesday.
Ninety-five percent of those surveyed among the
Class ABC on the income scale were satisfied with their lives, according to the
survey. The survey also indicated that the rates of life satisfaction were
quite high at 82 percent (Class D) and 74 percent (Class E).
The fourth quarter 2012 survey conducted among
1,200 adults nationwide on Dec. 8 to 11 showed that of the 81 percent, 33
percent were "very satisfied" and 48 percent "fairly
satisfied," the SWS said.
Lacierda assured the people that the government
would continue to undertake reforms and anti-poverty initiatives to provide for
better lives.
"As you know, we continue to improve our
efforts in good governance as well as to serve our countrymen," Lacierda
said.
Lacierda said the sound macroeconomic
fundamentals could be one of the factors for the survey's positive outcome.
"Kasama po rito ang pagganda ng ekonomiya
kahit paano, lumalago ang mga negosyo, nagkakaroon po ng pagkakataon ang mga
negosyante at ang ating mga taumbayan na magkaroon ng livelihood. ‘Yun po ang
ating nakikita —on a macro-situation," he said.
Lacierda noted that the government has already
taken significant steps to achieve its goal to further improve the country's
business climate.
The Philippines has finally won its much-coveted
investment grade status from the Fitch Group, one of three major international
credit rating agencies that assess the government’s ability to pay back its
debt and the chance of non-payment.
"The recent investment grade upgrade was
something that is very positive for us and we expect more in direct
investments. With the formal announcement of the investment grade status, we
expect more foreign direct investments, as well as for our local businessmen to
take advantage of low interest rates," he said. PND (js)
