PIA Dispatch - Monday, July 20, 2009

PGMA to unveil 2 potable water projects in Pampanga

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will unveil on monday two potable water projects that will benefit around 4,500 residents in Floridablanca as part of her Tubig sa Kanayunan Program being implemented by the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA).

The President will lead the capsule-laying of the P7.4-million Barangay Sto. Rosario Potable Water Supply System Project which will benefit 349 households or some 1,800 individuals in the area.

The proposed project includes the setting up of a water well, pumping station facilities, elevated steel tank and installation of pipelines and valves.

The President will also inaugurate the P4.38-million potable water system project in Barangay Carmencita by opening its butterfly-type valve that will release water into the flush box and distribution lines to benefit 462 households or some 2,772 residents in the barangay.

To welcome and assist the President are Floridablanca Mayor Eduardo Guerrero, LWUA Chairman Prospero Pichay, Cabinet Officer for Region 3 Sec. Edgardo Pamintuan and Floridablanca Water District General Manager Jeffrey Lintag.

The Chief Executive will also unveil the statue of her father, the late President Diosdado Macapagal, at the Floridablanca municipal hall in Barangay Poblacion.

Afterwards, the President will proceed to the City of San Fernando as guest speaker in the closing program of the Pampanga Barangay Summit at the Bren Guiao Convention Center.

To welcome her at the summit are Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno and
some 4,500 chairmen and councilors from the 505 barangays of Pampanga.


DOH to recommend price ceiling on 6 to 7 essential drugs

MANILA, July 20 - President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is set to sign an executive order imposing the maximum price ceiling on six to seven essential drugs not included in the list voluntarily recommended bypharmaceutical firms for price slashing. Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said in a press briefing today that the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP) has already submitted a letter of undertaking voluntarily trimming down prices of some 14 to 15 essential drugs by at least 50 percent.

The drug firms, he said, offered to reduce the prices of six to seven essential medicines to only 30 to 35 percent. These include anti-hypertensive, anti-cholesterol, anti-diabetes, two anti-infective and anti-cancer drugs.

Duque said that they are now carefully reviewing the proposals and will submit the recommendation to the President not later than Wednesday this week.

He said the forthcoming executive order will take effect on Aug. 15 and include only the six to seven essential drugs. The proposals received by the government came from 11 members of PHAP and two drug companies that are not members of the association.

Duque explained that some of the pharmaceutical companies that do not carry the 21 essential drugs also offered price reduction to 12 more products.

The Health Secretary pointed out that he does not accept the explanation of drug companies which failed to voluntarily slash the prices of the six to seven essential drugs that further reduction could “eat up their profits.” He said these drug firms have already generated hefty profits from these medicines.


CCM asks SC to stop Comelec from paying initial P4-B to Smartmatic-TIM for poll automation

MANILA, July 20 - The Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM) on Monday filed a "very urgent motion" before the Supreme Court (SC) seeking to stop the Commission on Elections (Comelec) from paying an initial amount of P4 billion to Smartmatic-Total Information Management consortium for the automation of the 2010 polls.

The group asked the High Court to stay the initial payment to the consortium pending their (CCM) petition questioning the validity of the P7.2-billion poll automation contract entered into by the Comelec and Smartmatic-TIM.

Under the contract, Smartmatic-TIM may collect from the Comelec up to P4 billion out of the P7.194-billion contract prior to its delivery of the 80,200 Precinct Count Optical Scan (POCS) machines to be used for the May 10, 2010 national and local elections.

The consortium has promised to deliver the first batch of the 80,200 machines in November this year.In their motion to stay the first payment of fees to Smartmatic-TIM Corporation, the petitioners said that such payment could cause irreparable injury not only to them but to the Filipino people as well in case "payment is made and the contract is declared invalid." The CCM claimed the contract is "frontloaded" and that "an obvious proof of this is that the delivery of the 80,200 machines will only require payment of 35 percent of the budget, when in the original Comelec budget the rental of equipment is 72.5 percent of the total budget."

"Thus, such terms of the contract patently disadvantageous to the people justify the immediate issuance by this Honorable Court of an order staying the expenditure of public funds in the contract to automate the country's election system awarded to the Smartmatic-TIM joint venture," the CCM said.

The CCM cited the MegaPacific contract which was nullified by the SC, wherein the Comelec spent P3.9 million in storage fees each year for automated counting machines (ACMs) not used due to violations of the law.

"The instant petition involves an even bigger contract. Petitioners respectfully argue that the lessons of the MegaPacifc deal should not be lost on this Honorable Court. The payment could well be made withno tangible deliveries. And if this Honorable Court nullifies the contract, Respondent Comelec will have already paid for something that it cannot use later," the petitioners said. "At least, in the MegaPacific deal, the machines had actually been delivered," the CCM argued.

In the Comelec-Smartmatic- TIM deal, P2.8 billion of the P7.194-billion contract price will have to be paid by Comelec before the machines could be delivered.

Aside from this, the Comelec is also required to pay a "project initialization setup" or 10 percent of the contract cost equivalent to P719 million.

This means, following the schedule of payments by December 2009, the Comelec shall have already paid P4.135 billion or 57 percent of the contract price, the petitioners said.

The High Court scheduled the CCM motion for oral argument on Wednesday, July 29, 2009 at 2 p.m.The CCM earlier asked the SC to stop the signing of the contract between Comelec, Smartmatic International Inc. and its local partner Total Information Management (TIM).They also asked that the contract be declared void for alleged violation of several provisions of the law.

In their 49-page petition, the CCM cited violations of the provisions of Republic Act 9369, otherwise known as the Poll Automation Law of 2007, saying that the Comelec failed to conduct any pilot testing ofthe Precinct Count Optical Scan machines by Smartmatic-TIM, which is a requirement under RA 9369.They noted that Section 5 of RA 9369 mandates that for the regular and national elections, the automated election system shall be used in at least two highly-urbanized cities and two provinces each in Luzon,Visayas and Mindanao to be chosen by the Comelec.


DBP loan jumpstarts missionary route in Luzon

State-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and the Northeastern Luzon Pacific Coastal Service, Inc. (NLPCSI)signed recently a P64.7 million loan agreement to finance the acquisition oftwo ferry vessels that will ply the missionary route in northeastern Luzon.

The ferry vessels will serve the provinces of Cagayan, Isabela, and Aurora, providing an affordable, reliable and convenient mode of transportation to move passengers, agricultural and marine productsfrom coastal towns to mainland markets.

DBP president & chief executive officer Reynaldo G. David said the initiative is in line with DBP’s flagship project, the Sustainable Logistics Development Program (SLDP) and supports the national government’s Strong Republic Nautical Highway.

He added that the opening of a missionary route will improve economic conditions and harness the tourism potential of northeastern Luzon, subsequently generating more employment opportunities for residents of coastal towns in the area.

NLPCSI president and chief executive officer Sec. Jose Mari Ponce, who is also administrator of the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority(CEZA) said the initiative will link two economic zones -- the Aurora Economic Zone and the Cagayan Free Port. He expressed optimism that the initiative will boost economic activity in the three provinces.

Isabela Governor Ma. Gracia Padaca, on the other hand, said the project will also help in promoting eco-tourism in the area while supporting the campaign against logging activities in the Sierra Madre mountain range.The project supports the Road Roll-on Roll-off Terminal System which is one of the three components of DBP’s Sustainable Logistics Development Program (SLDP). This is an investment financing facility for a comprehensive and integrated transportation system as well as related infrastructure and support services. The other components are the bulk grains highway which facilitates the transport of cornfrom Mindanao to Northern Luzon, while the cold chain highway is aimed at re-engineering the logistics system for perishables.

Founded in 2003, NLPCSI was formed by the provinces of Aurora, Isabela, and Cagayan, and the CEZA to establish a RORO system along thenortheastern coast of Luzon.


SONA security up

“Everything is now being put in place,” so said S/Supt. Leonardo Espina, Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson, in an interview.

Espina issued the statement in relation to the security plan being implemented by the PNP, including the installation of closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras in strategic areas in Metro Manila in coordination with the PNP – National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) for the State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on July 27, 2009.

The PNP spokesman said that aside from the installation of CCTV cameras, the PNP, the rally organizers and Quezon City Mayor Belmonte will meet on July 22, 2009 to iron OUT matters that may cause securityconcerns during the event.

He explained that the PNP is doing this to install peace, security and road traffic ease for the general public despite rally groups’ protest actions.

In a related story, Commission on Human Rights (CHR) chair Leila De Lima said that emotions are expected to rise because this is the last SONA of the incumbent President.

She pointed out that protest actions should be given leeway as this is a way for people to express themselves to the government. (PIA)