U.S. Commerce Secretary Pritzker pays courtesy
call on President Aquino
United States Secretary of Commerce Penny
Pritzker paid a courtesy call on President Benigno S. Aquino III at the
President’s Hall of Malacanang Palace on Wednesday.
Pritzker arrived in Manila on Tuesday, along
with a high-level business delegation, to meet with government officials and
several business leaders as part of Washington’s efforts to strengthen trading
partnerships with the Philippines.
Present during the meeting, which was held at
10:20 a.m., were Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, Finance
Secretary Cesar Purisima, Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla, and Philippine
Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia, Jr.
On the US side, Pritzker was joined by US
Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg and Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Global Markets Arun Kumar.
US President Barack Obama, during his visit in
Manila last April, announced that Pritzker and a delegation of American
business leaders would visit the region to help strengthen business ties
between the US and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Pritzker began the first leg of her Southeast
Asian trip in Vietnam on Monday. From Manila, she is scheduled to proceed to
Myanmar to meet with government officials, Burmese businessmen and civil
society leaders. PND (jb)
Global power company CEO Andres Gluski calls on
President Aquino
President Benigno S. Aquino III met with Chief
Executive Officer and President of global power company AES Corporation, Andres
Gluski, during a courtesy call at Malacanang’s Music Room on Wednesday.
Gluski was joined by AES Vice President Scott
Kicker during the courtesy call.
Also present at the meeting were Energy
Secretary Jericho Petilla, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario,
Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, and Philippine Ambassador to the United
States Jose Cuisia, Jr.
Gluski was part of the high-level business
delegation led by US Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, who arrived in
Manila on Tuesday along with members of the US-ASEAN Business Council.
Gluski has an extensive experience in the global
electricity business. He has been recognized as an industry leader on
international finance and infrastructure issues.
In September 2013, he was appointed by US
President Barack Obama as member of the President’s Export Council.
The AES Corporation owns and operates a diverse
portfolio of electricity generation and distribution businesses, which provide
energy to 21 countries across five continents. PND (jb)
President Aquino creates interagency task force
vs emerging infectious diseases
President Benigno S. Aquino III has created an
inter-agency task force to help the government effectively and systematically
manage and address emerging infectious diseases in the country in order to
prevent potential public health emergencies, Executive Secretary Paquito N.
Ochoa Jr. said on Wednesday.
Ochoa said the President signed Executive Order
No. 168 on May 26, 2014, establishing the Task Force on Emerging Infectious
Diseases (EID), which will be led by the Department of Health (DOH), to ensure
that the country is prepared to respond and control the spread of possible
epidemics in the Philippines.
The presidential order takes effect immediately
after publication in a newspaper of national circulation.
“Considering the threats and potential adverse
effects of these EID to our people and economy, it is essential for the
government to intensify its efforts,” Ochoa said.
“The creation of the task force is necessary to
institutionalize efficient government response to assess, monitor, contain and
prevent the spread of EID in the country and among Filipinos working overseas.”
According to Ochoa, the emergence of the Severe
Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome
Coronavirus (MERs-CoV), as well as the recurring threats of meningococcemia,
leptospiroris, antimicrobial resistant tuberculosis, among others, justifies
the establishment of the task force, which members also include the Departments
of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Justice
(DOJ), Labor and Employment (DOLE), Tourism (DOT) and Transportation and
Communications (DOTC).
Under the EO, the Task Force on EID is directed
to establish a system in managing the dangers posed by recurring and emerging
EID in order to properly identify, screen and assist Filipinos suspected or
confirmed to be infected with EID.
Part of the mandate of the task force is to
prevent and minimize the entry of suspected or confirmed patients with EID into
the country and its spread around the country, as well as conduct public
education on the prevention and control of EID.
EO No. 168 also empowers the task force to
enlist, if necessary, the help of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the
Philippine National Police and other law enforcement agencies, among others, in
enforcing quarantine orders or facilitating the transport of EID patients.
The DOH-led task control should also develop the
EID Preparedness Manual that will detail government response and protocols in
managing EID cases, such as quarantine procedures, immediate containment of EID
within ports of entry, epidemiological investigation and contact tracing,
treatment of infected cases and containments of affected areas, formulation of
a risk communication plan and EID materials for the general public, and
respective responsibilities of government agencies.
Funding of the task force will be drawn against
the current appropriations of its member-agencies and will eventually be
incorporated in their annual budget proposal through General Appropriations
Act. Additional funds and fund sources to augment existing budget of the task
force must be identified and provided for by the Department of Budget and
Management (DBM).
U.S.-ASEAN business delegation pays courtesy
call on President Aquino
A delegation of American CEOs grouped in the
US-ASEAN Business Council paid a courtesy call on President Benigno S. Aquino
III at Malacanang’s Receiving Hall on Wednesday.
United States Secretary of Commerce Penny
Pritzker, who had a separate courtesy call on the President, led the business
delegation together with Evan Greenberg, Chairman of the Board of the US-ASEAN
Business Council and Chairman, President and CEO of ACE Limited; and Alex
Feldman, President of US-ASEAN Business Council.
The American CEOs who joined them were Keith
Williams, President and CEO of Underwriters Laboratories; John Negroponte, Vice
Chairman of McLarty Associates; Hugo Bague, Group Executive of Organisational
Resources; Andres Gluski, President and CEO of the AES Corporation; Bill Ford,
President and CEO of General Atlantic; Daniel Glasier, President and CEO of
Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip
Goldberg was also at the meeting.
On the Philippine side were Foreign Affairs
Secretary Albert del Rosario, Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia, Jr.,
and Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima.
In a press briefing, Presidential Spokesperson
Edwin Lacierda said the American business leaders are in the country to
identify possible areas for investment.
“We spoke about potential areas of US investment
in the Philippines. Some of the areas where they are looking as potential areas
for investment include car manufacturing, energy, infrastructure in Mindanao,
infrastructure on mass transit, and also tourism,” Lacierda said.
He added that Pritzker commended President
Aquino on his leadership and the accomplishments he has done for the
Philippines.
Pritzker and the US business delegation’s trip
to the country aims to underscore the United States’ commitment to deepen
economic engagement in the ASEAN region.
“The US government and US businesses recognize
the tremendous mutually beneficial growth opportunities that exist in the
region, and are eager to serve as partners to ASEAN countries as they look to
support a growing middle class, develop world-class infrastructure, unleash
sustainable energy, and invest in their futures,” said Secretary Pritzker in
her arrival statement on Tuesday.
While in the Philippines, Secretary Pritzker
will also meet with business leaders to discuss how the country can continue
developing a fair and open business climate, reduce market access barriers, and
increase transparency.
She is also scheduled to deliver a major address
on America’s economic engagement in the Asia-Pacific region during a luncheon
with American Chambers of Commerce and Makati Business Club at New World Hotel
in Makati City. PND (jb)
United States, other countries want to invest in
Mindanao, Palace says
The United States and other countries are eyeing
Mindanao for their next investment ventures, Malacanang said Wednesday.
In a press briefing, Presidential Spokesperson
Edwin Lacierda said US Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker paid a courtesy call
on President Benigno S. Aquinio III on Wednesday and brought with her a
delegation of businessmen who wanted to see where they could invest.
“They are looking at potential areas of
investment, like car manufacturing, energy, infrastructure in Mindanao,
infrastructure on mass transit, and also tourism,” said Lacierda.
When US President Barack Obama made a state visit
last April, he announced that Pritzker and a delegation of American businessmen
will come to Manila to look into the possibility of investing in the country.
Lacierda said the business climate in the
country has become more favorable following the signing of the Comprehensive
Agreement on the Bangsamoro by representatives of the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front (MILF) and the Philippine government.
“Now that we have come to a peaceful agreement
with the MILF, many countries have been looking at Mindanao as a potential area
for investment. We’ve seen other countries—ASEAN nations looking into Mindanao.
And so, the United States is also one of the countries interested in looking
into investments in Mindanao,” said Lacierda.
The Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro,
signed last March 27, ended the decades-long conflict in Mindanao. PND (ag)
Measures in place to protect marine resources in
West Philippine Sea: Palace
The Philippine coast guard and fishery bureau
will ensure that the country’s maritime resources are protected as the
government awaits the resolution of its case against China regarding contested
territories in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), the Palace said.
"I think that is where we have made
measures, both by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and also
by our coast watch, to strengthen and to ensure our maritime resources,"
Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a press briefing in Malacanang on
Wednesday.
Lacierda was commenting on the concern of some
environmental groups that the country's marine resources in the disputed
territories could be depleted before the international tribunal makes a
decision on the issue.
Eleven Chinese fishermen were recently caught
poaching sea turtles off Palawan province.
News reports also said that black sand mining
operations being spearheaded by Chinese operators continue in Zambales, despite
a prohibition issued by the Supreme Court.
The international Arbitral Tribunal has asked
China to comment by December 15 this year on the case filed by the Philippines.
Lacierda said that the time frame set by the
tribunal is part of its rules in settling the dispute, and the Philippine
government will leave it to China whether or not to respond to the Memorial
filed by the Philippines.
The Philippines filed a case in the
international tribunal to clarify the rights and entitlements of each country
under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Lacierda
said.
"We are all signatories to a treaty or a
pact and all parties should abide by the treaty—the treaty provisions that we
all entered into," he said.
The Philippines has used the legal mechanism of
arbitration to once and for all settle the conflicting claims in the South
China Sea, the Palace official said.
The South China Sea, a major sea lane for trade
and commerce, is believed to be rich in gas and mineral resources. Aside from
China and the Philippines, other claimants include Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia,
and Taiwan. PND (as)
Palace says reconstruction work in typhoon-hit
areas continuing
Rebuilding and rehabilitation efforts in areas
devastated by Typhoon Yolanda continue, with the government and the private
sector working hand in hand, the Palace said on Wednesday.
Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda dismissed
reports that the majority of reconstruction efforts are being spearheaded by
the private sector, while government projects are on the back-burner.
"On the part of the national government,
insofar as national bridges, national roads are concerned, the DPWH, the work
is ongoing," Lacierda told reporters during a press briefing.
He also noted that the design for school
buildings has just been finalized, and the Education Department is in the
process of bidding out these projects.
The Department of Public Works and Highways
(DPWH), he said, has also finalized the design for resilient structures, such
as the foundation of houses, and this has been approved by Rehabilitation
Secretary Panfilo Lacson.
And while the government goes through the usual
bureaucratic procedures, it allowed the private sector to start its projects
for the typhoon survivors, Lacierda said.
Since the private sector is willing to fund
projects immediately, Secretary Lacson has asked private organizations to build
shelters and other projects, he said.
As far as the local governments are concerned,
Lacierda said funds have already been made available to them so they could
start rebuilding initiatives.
"They are supposed to be building the local
roads and local bridges, so that is the process right now," he said.
The government is also in the process of identifying
and accounting the P14 billion it has received from donor countries, to ensure
transparency in the release of funds for rehabilitation efforts, he added. PND
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