Tuesday 20 August 2013

PIA News Dispatch - Saturday, August 17, 2013

Govt ready to extend help to victims of Cebu sea mishap, says Malacanang

The government said it is ready to extend assistance to the victims of a sea mishap in Talisay City, Cebu, in addition to the help being extended by the shipping companies.

“Handa naman tayong magbigay ng kahit anong assistance na kailangan nila. As of the current situation, the management of 2Go Shipping Lines is providing relief assistance to them,” Deputy Presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said in a radio interview over dzRB Radyo ng Bayan on Saturday.

As of the moment, Valte said the shipping company has extended temporary shelters, hot meals, and medical assistance to the survivors. Other survivors are also being given accommodation while the situation is being sorted out, she added.

The Philippine Coast Guard reported that as of 10 a.m. Saturday the casualty figure was pegged at 26 while there were 629 survivors.

Different concerned government agencies and search and rescue assets are working together as a response to the accident, Valte said.

Among the agencies involved in the search and rescue efforts include the Philippine Coast Guard, Bureau of Fire Protection, the AFP Search and Rescue Group, and the LGU disaster volunteers, she said.

The Department of Health (DOH) and the All Terrain Medical and Relief Organization are also cooperating to lend their expertise, she added.

After the search and rescue as well as search and retrieval, the thrust will shift to determining the one accountable for the sea tragedy, Valte said.

“Magsi-shift na yan kasi since it is a maritime accident, it has to be determined kung sino ang at fault,” she said.

The accident happened Friday evening in Lawis Ledge in Talisay City, Cebu when MV Sulpicio Express 7 and the MV St. Thomas Aquinas 1 got into a collision. PND (as)


Palace: OFWs affected by Egypt conflict could avail of government assistance

Malacanang said the government is ready to extend assistance to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who will opt to return to the Philippines because of the ongoing tensions in Egypt.

In a radio interview over dzRB Radyo ng Bayan on Saturday, Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) has not received any requests for voluntary repatriation although there are reports of some Filipinos being injured in the conflict.

“But in case some of them decide to come home, may mga ready assistance ang DOLE natin for them. Merong mga small loan facilities that they can avail of; likewise, there is assistance that is given,” Valte said. “Tutulungan natin silang makapag-startup ng kanilang maliit na negosyo.”

The DOLE is giving assistance package to returning OFWs for the time being while they prepare to apply for another work abroad, she said.

Violence in Egypt has been continuing in the fourth day of the military government’s crackdown against protesters allied with the country’s former leader.

A mosque in Cairo became a makeshift morgue and field hospital for the Muslim Brotherhood, a pro-Mohamed Morsy group during clashes Friday. The protesters promised a “day of anger” over the military’s ouster of President Mohamed Morsy.
State-run media estimated the death toll in the area from 17 to 54.

US President Barack Obama condemned the crackdown on protesters on Thursday and canceled scheduled joint exercises by the US and Egyptian military. PND (as)