Philippines joins world in expressing sympathy
for Oklahoma City tornado victims in the US
The Philippines joined other nations in
expressing sympathy and grief for the residents of Oklahoma City suburb of
Moore in the United States that was struck by a gigantic tornado on Monday.
In a press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday,
Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte expressed sadness over the “loss
of young lives in this catastrophe” and offered prayers for the victims, their
families and friends.
According to reports, a giant tornado measuring
around two miles wide struck the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore and its environs
killing 24 people 9 of them were children. Packing winds of at least 200mph
(320km/h), the storm has been upgraded to the level of a powerful twister.
“The Filipino people join the world in grief in
the wake of a devastating tornado that struck Oklahoma City and its environs.
We extend our sympathies to the thousands affected by this calamity, among them
the Filipino-American community, who are confronted by the daunting task of
rebuilding their lives and their homes,” Valte said.
“We are deeply saddened by the loss of young
lives in this catastrophe, many of whom perished in a school. Our thoughts and
prayers are with their parents and families in these difficult times. May all
the victims of this disaster find solace and strength in the days ahead,” she
added. PND (rck)
President Aquino appoints new Associate Justice
of the Court of Tax Appeals
President Benigno S. Aquino III appointed Maria
Belen Ringpis-Liban as Associate Justice of the Court of Tax Appeals replacing
Olga R. Palanca-Enriquez.
The President signed Ringpis-Liban’s appointment
May 17.
A graduate of the UP College of Law,
Ringpis-Liban served as regional trial court judge of Malolos and Quezon City.
She also became a solicitor at the Office of the Solicitor General from 1988 to
1996.
From 1986 to 1988, she worked as a confidential
attorney at the Court of Appeals. Ringpis-Liban was also a legal associate at
PNCC and the Puruganan Ongkiko and Chato Law office.
Also on May 17 the President appointed Teresita
O. Hatta as executive director of the Central Bank Board of Liquidators. Hatta
replaces Leopoldo A. Abad Jr.
A graduate of Business Administration at the
University of the Philippines, Hatta worked as assistant governor of the Bangko
Sentral ng Pilipinas’s (BSP) Systems and Methods Office in 2001 to 2009.
She also became the BSP’s managing director for
Accounting and Information Technology and concurrent chief accountant and chief
information officer of the BSP from 1997 to 2001.
She also served in the old Central Bank of the
Philippines and also worked at the SGV and Co. for six years.
Other presidential appointments include Aurora
Javate-de Dios as Philippine Representative to the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women
and Children.
Javate-de Dios will serve for three years as the
country’s representative. PND (as)
Aquino government remains relentless in
anti-poverty fight, says Palace
Malacanang said it remains committed to
addressing poverty in the country through various initiatives and it is not
solely relying on surveys as benchmarks for its interventions.
In a latest Social Weather Stations (SWS)
survey, it showed a rise on the number of hunger incidence in the country, from
16.3 percent in December to 19.2 percent this March.
But in a press conference in Malacanang, Deputy
Presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the SWS survey, since it is done
quarter to quarter, is a little bit volatile or is moving up and down.
“This is partly why we don’t tend to take the
survey alone as the sole benchmark for prioritizing several areas for us to
concentrate or to at least target these areas,” Valte said.
“Marami pa tayong ibang factors na tinitingnan
para makita natin kung saan natin… dapat strategic din kasi ang paglagay ng mga
resources natin for poverty alleviation.”
One of the continuing thrusts of the government
is the expansion of the conditional cash transfer (CCT) program of the
government, the Palace official said.
The government said that all over the country
there were 3.9 million family beneficiaries of the CCT. The CCT is a human
development program that invests in the health and education of poor
households, particularly of children aged 0-14 years old.
Other programs also include livelihood for the
poor, Valte said. This initiative provides trainings to support for those who
wish to start small businesses, small or medium enterprises, she added.
The government has also identified several areas
to prioritize to generate more jobs particularly in the agri-business and
tourism sectors, she added. PND (as)
Philippines now an Extractive Industries
Transparency Initiative candidate country following international board’s
approval, Palace announces
The Philippines became a candidate country for
the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) following the approval
of an international board, the Palace announced on Wednesday.
In a press conference in Malacanang, Deputy
Presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the Palace was informed by
Secretary Elisea Gozun of the Presidential Assistant on Climate Change that the
Philippines’s candidacy was approved by the international board.
“We would like to congratulate those who have
formed the multi-stakeholder group that will be working on this. We
congratulate them for their hard work and candidate country na tayo for EITI,”
Valte said.
Becoming part of the EITI will make the
Philippines more transparent and accountable in the payment and collection of
money in the country’s extractive industries.
Complying with EITI will make sure that
companies engaged in extractive businesses pay the right taxes and revenues for
the benefit of the people, Guzon said in a press conference in Malacanang last
April.
Now that the Philippines becomes an EITI
candidate it is required to prepare a report which will be reconciled and
validated by an international validator accredited by the international board,
she noted.
In the first phase of its candidacy, the
Philippines had to comply with four requirements. First, the government must
issue an unevocable public statement of its intention to join EITI. The
government complied with the issuance of Executive Order 79, Gozun previously
explained.
The second requirement is for government to
appoint a senior individual to lead the implementation. President Aquino
designated Gozun as the EITI Lead Senior government official.
The third requirement is the government’s
commitment to work with civil society and companies on the implementation of
EITI.
The Philippines will benefit from participating
in the EITI by implementing an internationally recognized transparency standard
that will benefit the country’s commitment to reform and anti-corruption, which
is all in line with the basic social contract of the President with the Filipino
people, Gozun said.
EITI, launched by former British Prime Minister
Tony Blair in 2002 at the World Summit for Sustainable Development, is an
international multi-stakeholder group that sets standards for transparency in
extractive industry payments and receipts.
It aims to strengthen governance by improving
transparency and accountability in extractive industries.
The first EITI international board was
established in October 2006. Currently, there are 37 countries participating in
the EITI, 20 of which are already compliant, and 17 are candidates. PND (as)
