Don’t use minors in propaganda BY JUDY F. PARTLOW

Special investigator Jess Cañete of the Commission on Human Rights in Negros Oriental yesterday warned political candidates not to exploit minors in campaigning for the May 13 polls.

This was after a 14-year-old parking attendant said that he and his companion were paid P50 each last week to distribute a two-page document at the Dumaguete Public Market.

The boy said that on April 21, two men asked him and his companion to distribute three plastic bags of folded sheets of paper.

He said it took them half a day to do it and they went to the Marian Priests Center at the St. Catherine of Alexandria Cathedral compound later for the feeding activity conducted by the Franciscan sisters of the Diocese of Dumaguete. A volunteer saw the bundles of paper and called the attention of Sr. Maria, who told the boys to stop distributing them.

The document attacked incumbent Gov. Roel Degamo for his alleged sexual abuses of women, three of whom were named. The second page was a copy of a case filed against the governor for acts of lasciviousness when he was still a councilor of Siaton, Negros Oriental.

The case, raised by Degamo’s political opponents last year, was reported to have been dismissed already.

Cañete appealed to bets to stop using black propaganda to discredit their opponents and called the distribution of the document as a desperate act of a candidate.

Cañete said that, if there is enough identification and evidence against the perpetrators, he will make sure that they will be prosecuted.

He also said that exploiting minors for such practice is a violation of Republic Act 7610, or the Anti-Child Abuse Act.*JFP

Heart Evangelista goes sexy for men's magazine ABS-CBNnews.com

MANILA, Philippines – It’s confirmed: actress Heart Evangelista is on the cover of the “election issue” of the men’s magazine Esquire Philippines.

The former Kapamilya actress, who is currently in a relationship with re-electionist senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero, is seen wearing a white, low-neck tank top bearing the word “vote” and a pair of black panties on the cover of Esquire Philippines’ May 2013 issue.

Heart Evangelista appears on the "election issue" of Esquire Philippines. Photo from the magazine's Facebook page

“Heart Evangelista wants you to vote wisely,” the magazine said on its Facebook page when it uploaded a photo of the cover on Tuesday afternoon.

Evangelista, 28, has often made the news for her controversial relationship with 43-year-old Escudero, whose marriage was annulled just last year.

The actress’ parents, Cecille and Rey Ongpauco, called for a press conference last month to express their disapproval of Evangelista’s relationship with the senator. The Ongpauco couple called Escudero a “braggart” and an “alcoholic” who is just “manipulating” their 28-year-old daughter to achieve his political goals.

Evangelista has consistently defended her boyfriend from her parents, and even said in one interview that she has considered marrying without their permission.

PNP monitors 15 'election hotspots' by Ira Pedrasa, ABS-CBNnews.com

MANILA - The Philippine National Police (PNP) has identified 15 priority provinces in need of a bigger security detail by the elections, noting such areas have shown incidents of intense political rivalries, and the presence of private armed groups and criminal groups.

Local Government Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II described the areas as “hotspots” but assured the public that the government will be detailing around 30,000 police personnel in the last two weeks before Election Day.

PNP spokesperson Chief Supt. Generoso Cerbo Jr. said the 15 are: Abra in CAR; Pangasinan, Ilocos Sur and La Union in Region 1; Cagayan in Region 2; Pampanga and Nueca Ecija in Region 3; Batangas and Cavite in Region 4A; Masbate in Region 5; Samar in Region 8; Misamis Occidental in Region 10; and Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur and Basilan in the ARMM.

Cerbo said private armed groups continue to be monitored specifically in these 15 areas, but noted the decline in numbers since the 2010 presidential elections.

He said the police are monitoring 48 private armed groups, compared to the 112 back in May 2010.

He said the 57% reduction is anchored on the creation of regional operations task groups tasked to rein in these groups.

He cited that in Abra, there are five groups being monitored compared to 11 in 2010. In the ARMM where the infamous Maguindanao massacre happened, private armed groups are down to 10 from 20.

He said around 206 members of these groups have been “neutralized,” meaning arrested or have surrendered. Around 359 firearms were also recovered from them.

Political rivalries

In citing the 15 areas, Cerbo also noted the “intense” political rivalries there.

Mayoralty positions garnered the most cases of political rivalries, numbering 137. Gubernatorial posts recorded 17; vice mayoralty posts recorded seven. Interestingly, 18 cases were recorded for congressional posts.

Cerbo also noted the presence of criminal groups in the areas being monitored, numbering 65 and with a membership of 725. He said the police are continuously seeking search warrants against the criminal elements.

He said the police are still pursuing “Oplan Katok”, a campaign that confiscates unrenewed and illegal firearms house-to-house.

Election-related violence

Cerbo said criminal elements can be used by some politicians to create havoc during the elections.

A total of 17 election-related violence cases have been validated so far in these 15 areas. He said this is a drop from the 33 back in 2010.

Nationwide, 49 election-related violence cases were recorded compared to 73 in 2010.

Roxas noted that the next two weeks will be crucial in securing the country against crimes. To supplement the 30,000 additional personnel, he said those in the training and administrative work will be pulled out to do field work.

He also noted that members of the police have been ordered to cancel their leaves for the remainder of the election period.

He also said they are now discussing plans with telecommunication and power firms to ensure that the elections will run smoothly.

Car repair shop helper killed in brawl at woman’s house in QC By Jeannette I. Andrade Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines — A neighborly visit to a woman’s house at an ungodly hour proved fatal on Sunday to a 27-year-old automobile repair shop helper who was stabbed dead in a brawl with three other male guests in Quezon City.

Howard Oliver Abina III, a resident of Salanap Compound, Sitio Mendez in Barangay (village) Baesa, was killed instantly while his 37-year-old companion and neighbor Danilo Corpuz was wounded in the melee but survived by bringing himself to the East Avenue Medical Center for treatment.

Corpuz, Quezon City police investigators said, had triggered the brawl with the three men who fled after the knife attack and have become subjects of a hunt.

Senior Police Officer 1 Cristituto Zaldarriaga, of the Quezon City Police District Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit (QCPD-CIDU), said that brawl happened at around 1:30 a.m., inside the house of a Shirley Oliveria at Salanap Compound, Sitio Mendez in Barangay Baesa.

Zaldarriaga said that when Abina and Corpuz arrived at Oliveria’s house, they found three other male guests already seated in the living room.

The case investigator said that Corpuz suddenly asked one of the men, “Why? Is there a problem?” which sparked an argument and subsequently a fist-fight between them. Abina tried to help his companion during the brawl but was stabbed in the right side of the chest by one of the men.

Abina died instantly while Corpuz, who was likewise stabbed, managed to bring himself to the nearest hospital and seek treatment.

Nancy Binay still won’t do debates

By Christian V. Esguerra 

Philippine Daily Inquirer  

DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines—Those eager to see Nancy Binay in a public debate would have to wait until after the May 13 senatorial elections.

If she wins, the daugher of Vice President Jejomar Binay said, she would be willing to go head-to-head with Team PNoy counterpart Risa Hontiveros on the Senate floor, assuming, of course, that the former Akbayan representative gets into the “Magic 12″ as well.

“I told her it’s okay. If both of us get elected to the Senate, the two of us would be able to debate every day in the Senate,” she told reporters during a campaign sortie here.

But in the meantime, Binay insisted that she would rather focus on the campaign trail with less than three weeks to go before elections.

“It seems there’s no more time for debates because there are still many provinces that I need to visit,” she said in Filipino.

More ground to cover

Binay said she still had more ground to cover because she joined the the senatorial race relatively late. She joined the United Nationalist Alliance ticket after businessman Joey De Venecia backed out.

“Most of [the candidates] had already prepared a year ago because they already had intentions of running,” she said.

Despite her purported reluctance to seek public office, Binay has performed well in surveys of voter preferences in the senatorial elections. She ranked third and fourth in the latest Social Weather Stations survey.

In contrast, Hontiveros, who has been challenging her to a debate, has consistently failed to get into the top 12 of all major surveys so far.

Still, Binay said she would not go easy on her campaign. She noted that in the 2010 vice presidential election, her father, then Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, had been trailing frontrunner Mar Roxas. The elder Binay eventually won.

“What happened to my father’s opponent, I don’t want that to happen to me,” she said. “To me, surveys are not the true test of who would win or lose in the election.”

Binay added: “My mind-set is I’m not winning."

UNA candidate sees red over Aquino’s yellow rap

By Leila B. Salaverria

Philippine Daily Inquirer

LEGAZPI CITY—President Aquino should not begrudge other parties from sporting yellow as their campaign color and should not lose his head over such trivialities, an opposition senatorial candidate said here on Monday.

Zambales Rep. Milagros “Mitos” Magsaysay, a senatorial candidate of the opposition United Nationalist Alliance (UNA), said the colors chosen by local parties should not concern the President, as there are far more important matters that demand his attention.

Magsaysay was reacting to reports that the President chided the UNA for having local candidates in General Santos City who were using yellow as their campaign color.

Yellow is the official color of the President’s Liberal Party. It is the signature color of Aquino’s mother, the late President Corazon Aquino, who battled dictator Ferdinand Marcos in a snap presidential election in 1986 wearing yellow dresses to signify the Filipinos’ struggle for freedom.

“I think the President should stop looking at trivialities, as far as the election is concerned. What he should focus on is how to address the problems of the country, not the uniforms of local candidates,” Magsaysay told reporters here.

For instance, criticizing local candidates for wearing yellow despite not being affiliated with Team PNoy will not solve the power shortage in General Santos City, she said.

Magsaysay also said that in the first place, no group owns any color.

“Does Team PNoy have a patent for the color yellow? Have they bought the ‘rights’ to that color?” she said.

In a separate statement, UNA campaign manager Toby Tiangco said the alliance was not trying to mislead the voters.

The UNA’s national campaign color is orange, he said, but its local allies are free to choose any color for their campaign.

Tiangco pointed out that some of the local allies of Team PNoy use colors other than yellow.

Gov’t readies nonwage benefits 70 job fairs to highlight Labor Day celebration

Tina G. Santos

The government would unveil “nonwage” benefits on Labor Day, Malacañang said Sunday, as it exhorted Filipinos to seize some 400,000 jobs in job fairs to be held Tuesday across the country.

President Aquino would meet with labor leaders in a breakfast dialogue on Tuesday in Malacañang, but the country’s workforce shouldn’t expect any announcement of wage benefits, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said.

“Well, the President is going to sit down with them in the usual dialogue with labor and to also help Secretary (Rosalinda) Baldoz appeal to the workers’ sector … to wait for the unveiling of the package. That’s nonwage benefits,” Valte said.

Valte said the public should withhold comment on the package until this is presented.

Before the Palace unveiled the package of nonwage benefits, Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) described the minimum pay in the country as “starvation wages.”

“The minimum wage cannot buy a working class family its daily bread. The Constitution mandates that a worker receive a living wage. Instead, the regional wage boards prescribed a libing (burial) wage,” PM secretary general Judy Miranda said in a statement sent to the Inquirer.

The group said its own study of the cost of living for a family of six in Metro Manila showed that it had already reached P1,217 a day.

“This estimate shows that the gap between the P456 minimum wage in (Metro Manila) and the present cost of living is a yawning P761, or 167 percent of the ordinary wage. Even if both parents work—which is the buy-one, take-one policy of the government—then their combined income will not be enough to feed the entire family,” Miranda said.

The group’s cost of living estimate did not provide for savings and social security, which in the government’s basket of goods and services constitute 10 percent of the cost of living.

Miranda said the study did not include items such as leisure and recreation, and the family budget for health excluded medical expenses.

“If we include such items, and we must in a more accurate survey, then the cost of living will significantly exceed P1,200 per day,” she said.

‘Hopelessly outdated’

She added that “the National Wages and Productivity Council’s cost of living estimate of P917 in 2008 is hopelessly outdated in light of this study and in the face of continuing inflation.”

The militant labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU), which is usually not invited to the breakfast dialogue with the President, is gearing up for Labor Day protest rallies that would include the burning of Aquino’s effigy.

KMU chairman Elmer Labog said the President was condoning increases in power and water rates, in prices of oil and other basic goods, and the privatization of public hospitals.

Jobless growth

“The burden on the Filipino workers and urban poor is getting more and more unbearable because of Aquino’s subservience to the dictates of the United States and of his big capitalists cohorts,” Labog said.

Officials of the moderate Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) vowed to raise unmet labor issues and “jobless growth” on Tuesday’s pre-Labor Day breakfast with Aquino at the Heroes Hall.

“On top of the agenda is this so-called jobless growth. There has been a pronounced improvement in the economy but this growth does not translate to generate opportunities for employment,” TUCP secretary general Gerard Seno said in a statement.

In 2012, the country posted a 6.6-percent gross domestic product growth compared with Thailand’s 6.4 percent, Indonesia’s 6.2 percent, Malaysia’s 5.6 percent, Vietnam’s 5 percent and Singapore’s 1.2 percent.

But citing the National Statistics Office, the TUCP said there were 2.89 million unemployed Filipinos and 7.934 million underemployed Filipinos in January 2013.

The “all-time high” underemployment rate in six years was recorded in July 2012 at 8.55 million, it added.

Poverty incidence

Besides the big number of unemployed and underemployed, poverty incidence in the country has remained unchanged over the past six years despite economic growth.

Poverty incidence in the first semester of 2012 stood at 27.9 percent, “practically unchanged” from 28.6 percent in 2009 and 28.8 percent in 2006, the National Statistical Coordination Board announced on April 23.

The high poverty incidence showed that the benefits of economic growth were not trickling down to the poor.

Valte said that the last time she checked, the unemployment rate was going down. “We see that the trend is going down,” she said.

70 job fairs

As part of Labor Day celebrations, the Department of Labor and Employment would open 70 job fairs in the country’s 16 regions on Tuesday, she said.

“So there are over 400,000 jobs that will be available—both local and overseas job opportunities that will be available in the 70 job fairs. And we encourage everybody to go to those job fairs and see what these have in store for you,” she said.

The TUCP said that high on the agenda of Tuesday’s dialogue with the President were issues such as employment and job creation, contractualization, social protection, right to self-organization and collective bargaining, wage increase, tripartism and social dialogue, and labor dispute settlement.

In a paper submitted to the Tripartite Industry and Peace Council, the Associated Labor Unions-TUCP recommended that the administration:

– Prioritize the creation of “decent” and productive employment.

– Ensure approval of the security of tenure bill.

– Direct labor officials to review outsourcing policies in the banking sector and other industries.

– Set up a commission on industrial policy.

– Craft a clear industrial policy.

Mural, effigy

The KMU said it was preparing a mural and an effigy that would be showcased on May 1. The mural, measuring 15 by 24 feet, depicts Aquino dressed as a clown and hounded by workers, peasants, urban poor and other sectors while hanging on an airplane piloted by US President Barack Obama.

Created by painter and printmaker Orlando Castillo, former president of the Art Association of the Philippines and founding member of the Concerned Artists of the Philippines, the mural will be unveiled at a program in Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila.

Other artworks by various artists will be highlighted on Labor Day, according to Labog.

“They depict suffering and lies being inflicted on the Filipino workers by President Noynoy Aquino,” he added.

Labog said Castillo’s mural “also shows the growing anger of the Filipino people against Aquino’s antipoor policies, betrayal of the people, and puppetry to the US. Anger at Aquino’s propaganda stunts aimed at deceiving the public is intensifying.”

The 10-feet tall effigy being created by artists from UgatLahi Artist Collective depicts Aquino and Obama as two serpents around an electric post.

The concept was inspired by the symbol for universal healthcare, according to KMU.

The effigy would be burned at around 5 p.m. at the Chino Roces bridge (formerly Mendiola) in Manila to mark the closing of this year’s Labor Day protests.

Read more: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/399063/govt-readies-nonwage-benefits#ixzz2Rz1xlzSv

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She danced while a nation burnt

By Luis H. Francia

2:17 pm | Monday, April 29th, 2013

NEW YORK - Was it Oscar Wilde who quipped that one thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about?

In this regard, Imelda Romualdez Marcos need not worry. The ex-czarina of the Philippines has never been out of the spotlight even after her less than glamorous exit from center stage. Still, the provincial lass-made-good lived very well in Honolulu, though perhaps not as luxuriously as when, with Ferdinand, bringing the country to ruin. When apparently unable to touch her bank accounts while being tried in a US federal court for alleged crimes committed while in office, she was bailed out, literally, by her glam friend Doris Duke—a trial in which she was acquitted, on her birthday no less, leading her to remark that it was Ferdie up in heaven who made it all possible. Of course, I doubt it was from heaven that the dead tyrant pulled strings. Besides, it has always struck me as odd, the implication of that statement, that only a miracle would save her from federal prison, suggesting that if there had been no divine intervention she would have been found guilty.

Former first lady Imelda R. Marcos

David Byrne’s musical Here Lies Love, labeled a “poperetta,” would surely not surprise Imelda, did she care to notice, that her life story has been reclaimed for the stage at the Public Theater, a theatrical mainstay of downtown Manhattan. Would the work please her? She probably would consider that question irrelevant, apropos of Wilde. Byrne has fashioned a piece of musical theater that attempts to depict a psychological portrait of La Imelda within the setting of a discotheque—his and Fatboy Slim’s music, lights, DJ, slide shows, the works—going by the much publicized fact of Imelda’s fancy for discoing.

He with some singers performed the music at a Carnegie Hall concert gig some years back, and was rightly criticized (by myself, among others) for overlooking the much darker side of the woman who would be queen. This time there is more of that side, while still hewing to the pop psychologizing of a poor girl’s need to satisfy her craving for acceptance and respectability by acquiring all the conventional tokens of a high-end lifestyle: jewels, artworks, real estate—not to mention shoes, of which there is blessedly no mention here.

Here Lies Love has catchy, danceable tunes, and, as staged by Alex Timbers, motion, sound, images and lights combine to not just evoke an era but also actually transform the theater into a disco. There are no seats, except for the upper boxes, so most of the audience becomes disco goers, standing and dancing beside moveable platforms where different parts of the poperetta unfold. Ruthie Ann Miles and Jose Llana bring verve and magnetism to their roles as Imelda and Ferdinand, embodying the real-life duo’s view of themselves as the mythical Malakas (Strength) and Maganda (Beauty).

It is a thoroughly enjoyable spectacle. And yet, pop psychology is in the end unsatisfying, simply because it adheres to a rather simplistic intellectual frame. Yes, Imelda was driven by an unflagging insecurity about her humble origins but one’s social genesis is not the only determinant of future behavior. Played with convincing grit by Melody Butiu, Estrella Cumpas—the loyal servant who took care of Imelda and her siblings when they were poor relations of the father’s first family—tells Imelda, in one of the sharper encounters, that there was nothing wrong with growing up poor.

Rather than point to that as a measure of her character, Imelda shied away from this inconvenient bit of reality and deliberately made moral and ethical decisions in her personal and political life (to her, they were inseparable) that stressed appearance above everything else. In Byrne’s telling, she causes the disappearance of Estrella and also warns Ninoy Aquino not to return once he leaves with his family for the United States.

The poperetta stresses Imelda’s penchant for culture and the arts. True enough, but nowhere is there a mention of the huge scandal due to the1981 tragedy that befell workers rushing to complete the Film Palace, as part of the Cultural Center complex, with strict orders from Imelda that they were to do so 24/7 to ready it for her ill-advised Manila International Film Festival. The haste led to a top floor collapsing and burying those underneath it, in quick-drying cement. Attempts were made to suppress the deaths—after all, these bodies belonged to nobodies—but the event was too much of a tragedy to be kept from the news.

Political and social events are sketched that point the way to the 1986 People Power movement that forced the Marcoses to flee. Towards the conclusion, a member of the terrific ensemble starts playing on acoustic guitar songs whose lyrics are based on the actual words of those who had taken part in the 1986 uprising. He is joined shortly by two other drum-playing ensemble members. It is a beautiful, reflective scene, and I initially thought, what a great way to end the night, hearing from the too-often anonymous. I was mistaken, however, for the last number is reserved for Imelda and the ensemble, singing the lead song, “Here Lies Love.”

Good music, wrong notes.

Copyright L.H. Francia 2013

Haemophilia patients demand better treatment, infrastructure

Sumitra Deb Roy, TNN | Apr 28, 2013, 06.28 PM IST

MUMBAI: This World Hemophilia Day, the city's Hemophilia Society, brought focus on how the government needs to do much more in terms of awareness, diagnosis and management of the disease. A programme to discuss these issues was organized at the Parel's KEM Hospital, where over 400 patients participated.

Out of 11,200 haemophiliacs in the state, only 2,500 feature in the registry of the State Blood Council. And even though, the Rajiv Gandhi Jeevandayi Arogya Yojana that covers over 900 diseases, includes Hemophilia in the list, a clear demand for better infrastructure and day care centers for proper care and rehabilitation, was echoed by patients.

President of Mumbai's Hemophilia Society Indira Nair said, "Not only we want to raise the awareness about the Hemophilia disease among physicians and the public, but also to provide patients who suffer from Hemophilia a total care. We are thankful to the government for making the availability of factor VIII and IX concentrates as the safest treatment option for patients with hemophilia." She said that the government will continue to support with the availability of free treatment to patients with hemophilia at all the government hospitals.

"Improving Infrastructure and establishing hemophilia treatment centre's can be one step to ensure these patients get the best care. The next step would be a creating more awareness about the disease and providing comprehensive psycho-social care mechanism for the PWH in the state," said Nair.

However, one of the major challenges for these chapters is treating poor as most of the patients are from poorest of poor background and more than 80% of patients suffering from hemophilia are undiagnosed. A wellness centre for the hemophiliac patients, the first of its kind in the city, was started at the KEM Hospital.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Jayashri Kale, professor and head Occupational Therapy, KEM Hospital said "Hemophilia is the oldest known uncommon genetic bleeding disorder that disrupts the blood clotting process. It is caused by the absence of a certain blood clotting factor in the blood. Prolonged bleeding may occur after sustaining injury or can happen spontaneously. A hemophilic has to be injected with the appropriate clotting factor on a prophylactic or demand basis to help control a bleeding episode, and each injection costs Rs 9,000. Replacement therapyof a deficient coagulation of factor VIII and IX are the safest available treatment options. We have been demanding free diagnosis and free treatment for patients with hemophilia at Government hospitals and today we have been successful in launching the first wellness centre for these patients. Thera-band exercises which are safe and effective, especially for home maintenance in the PWH are being incorporated in the rehabilitation regime.

File SALN before April 30, govt officials, employees reminded April 28, 2013 2:07pm

Malacañang on Sunday issued a last-minute reminder to public servants to file their Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs) on or before Tuesday, April 30.

Filing the SALNs on time is the “personal responsibility” of each government employee," she said on government-run dzRB radio.

Also, Valte said that in the case of the Office of the President, employees had been given a deadline of April 15, so a review committee can check how they filed their SALNs.

Review committees set up by individual government agencies and departments will check if the employees complied with the new guidelines of the Civil Service Commission in filing the SALNs.

“Dapat naibigay na sa review committee bago dumating ang deadline para matingnan nila (The employees should submit their SALNs to the review committees before the April 30 deadline),” she said.

Earlier, the Office of the Ombudsman reminded public servants to file their SALNs by April 30.

Government officials and employees are to file SALNs within 30 days after assuming office, and on or before April 30, and within 30 days after their separation from government service.

Failure to do so may carry a suspension of up to six months for the first offense, and dismissal from the service for the second offense. — LBG, GMA News

Senators deplore poverty situation in Phl

By Christina Mendez

MANILA, Philippines - Administration allies in the Senate on Wednesday deplored the latest report of the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) which revealed that the percentage of Filipinos living below the poverty line has remained unchanged since 2006.

Senators Ralph Recto, chairman of the Senate committee on ways and means, said that with the latest NSCB report the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program is "not enough” to address the country's problem on poverty.

Recto there is a need to provide “more investments to educate the poor families so they can help themselves.” He also cited the need for the government to invest more in infrastructure and factories to create more jobs.

He said health care must be accessible and affordable to the poor as well.

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has listed the government’s poverty reduction and empowerment of the poor and vulnerable program as among the highlights of the Aquino administration for 2013.

The CCT is also known as the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

In the summary report of the DBM about the 2013 budget, the agency recognized poverty “which brings about a sense of powerlessness”, causing frustration and despair among the poor.

“This vicious cycle has to end; thus, the government seeks to rescue the poor who are drowning in the morass of poverty through social protection packages, such as the CCT,” the DBM said in its briefer.

When the CCT program was first implemented under the Arroyo administration in 2007, there were 6,000 initial beneficiaries with P50-million budget. In 2008, there was P 1.27-billion budget for 337,416 beneficiaries; P6.61-billion for 777,505 beneficiaries in 2009; P10.93-billion for 999,432 beneficiaries in 2010; P21.19-billion for 2.3-million beneficiaries in 2011; and P39.45-billion for 3.1-million beneficiaries in 2012.

For 2013, the DBM said P44.26-billion budget has been allocated for 3.8-million beneficiaries of the program.

What’s new?

Sen.Sergio Osmeña III, meanwhile, said that poverty has been a phenomenon not only this year but for over a decade. “Not only in our country but in many countries, even first world nation.”

Osmeña described the phenomenon as “jobless growth,” which he explained as when highly-skilled workers become more productive and earn raises in pay.

“The question is what to do to create more jobs? But that’s a long discussion, ask the trained economists,” Osmeña said in a text message to reporters.

For his part, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said the poverty survey is validated during his visits to various neighborhoods in the National Capital Region.

“I can actually validate that survey result on poverty situation when I go around and see for myself poverty at its worst,” Lacson said.

He said he had seen a number of communities “very close to NCR, if not within NCR itself where one cannot imagine how the residents can last a day under the conditions they are in.”

Drilon’s ’12-0′ called ‘mind conditioning’

DUMAGUETE CITY ­- Vice President Jejomar C. Binay once again dismissed the 12-0 target of Liberal Party (LP) campaign manager Sen. Franklin M. Drilon as “impossible“ due to the groundswell of support for United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) Senate bets on the local level.

But the Vice President expressed concern that Drilon’s impulsive optimism may be directly described as “mind conditioning.“

In a press conference last week, Drilon accused UNA of mind conditioning that there will be “massive cheating“ in Mindanao brought by the power outages.

Binay said the concerns being raised by UNA with regard the possibility of massive cheating in the middle of the power crisis in Mindanao are legitimate issues and not just a baseless agitation.

“Kung mind-setting ang paguusapan natin eh guilty si Drilon dun. Ang mind-setting ni Drilon, 12-0. Pwede ba naman yung 12-0? That is a concrete example of mind setting,“ Binay said.

Even LP ally Sen. Serge Osmena said that Drilon’s 12-0 dream is unrealistic and impossible to achieve, saying that the LP campaign manager is threading a dangerous and twisted path.

Drilon said in a press conference that the massive cheating in Mindanao which UNA allegedly fears is a form of mind conditioning.

UNA said that massive cheating in Mindanao is a matter of fact and not a product of any imagination or fear.

Posted by Online on Apr 29th, 2013

Army to bets: Don't give in to rebel demands

By Editha b. Colmo
Published: April 29, 2013

Capiz - Major Gen. Jose Mabanta,  Jr,  commanding general of the 3rd Infantry division, Philippine Army, is reiterating his call to the political candidates not to give in to the demands of the CPP-NPA through their Permit to Campaign (PTC) scheme and other extortion activities.   

Major Gen  Mabanta  in a press release, said that “We are warning them not to allow the CPP-NPA influence the outcome of this coming election through threats. We have data to support that a handful political contenders are extending financial assistance and giving in to the demands of the CPP-NPA extortionists. We will not allow this and we remind  that their decision to give in will have legal repercussion.” 

Early this year, reports from the Army field units state that some candidates received Permit to Campaign letters from the CPP-NPA, with some PTC letters recovered during the apprehension of CPP-NPA top leaders in the region recently. 

Mabanta stressed that “Giving in to the demands is not a guarantee that the CPP-NPA will not harass the candidates anymore and be given access. There is evidence of politicians who give in to extortion demands of the CPP-NPA and are still continuously harassed. This is because of factious leadership on their (CPP-NPA-NDF) organization. They now lack leaders and have inconsistent chain of command.” 

Series of armed violence and atrocities that indiscriminately violate human rights and the International Humanitarian Law shows that CPP-NPA leadership is not in control and has no grasp of their forces. 

Mabanta further stressed that “At this point, there is infighting among their (CNN) top leadership and this will ripple down to their lower levels.” 

Due to lack of support and confidence in the CNN higher level leadership, their local leaders are starting to come out in the open in order to extort. 

From the start of this year to date, seven (7) CPP-NPA leaders in Western Visayas were apprehended by the joint forces of the AFP and the PNP through the Regional Joint Peace and Security Coordination Center (RJPSCC) and the AFP-PNP COMELEC checkpoint. All of them have warrants of arrest with cases ranging from arson to murder.

“The CPP-NPA has already lost the support of their mass base so  they resort to extort from the people especially the candidates during elections. Candidates who are giving in to their demands are just helping the rebels to regroup and further conduct terroristic activities that victimize innocent people. We will file criminal charges against  candidates who insist.  and let them face the consequence, Mabanta added.

No internet but need your files? Google Chrome's offline sync is the answer

Users of Google Drive who may not always have Internet access can now create and edit drawings and have access to their other files stored on the cloud-based service with a new automatic offline sync feature.

In a Google+ post, Google said it may take time for all users of Google Drive to see the changes, which it said are now being rolled out. The feature is available for Google's Chrome browser.

"If you've set up Google Drive offline, you can now create and edit drawings offline. In addition, all of your Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides will now be automatically available offline (space permitting), so you won't have to worry about remembering that specific file before catching your flight!" it said. 

However, Google reiterated only one Google account per Chrome profile can set up offline access to Drive.

"If you are unable to set up offline access because another user has already done so, you can create a new Chrome profile and then follow the above steps to add offline access for your account," it said. 

A separate article on “PC World” added a user must enable offline access for the feature to work.

"Chrome previously allowed offline editing for individual documents, but that meant you had to plan ahead and choose which files to sync. Now, the Drive app for Chrome syncs all files automatically," it added. 

“PC World” also said that if a user edits a document offline on one computer while someone else edits the online version, "Drive will combine the text from both documents once you’re back online."

"You won’t lose any text this way, but you may have to edit down the combined work," it added. – KDM, GMA News 

By:www.gmanetwork.com

K Brosas grilled on 'Ihaw Na!'

Actress-comedienne K Brosas was interviewed by fellow comedian Jason Gainza on Thursday’s “Ihaw Na!” segment. -- Banana Nite, ABS-CBN, April 25, 2013

Posted at 04/26/2013 10:30 AM

CDO congressional debate ends in fistfight

A congressional forum in Cagayan de Oro ended up in a brawl.

Supporters of reelectionist Congressman Rufus Rodriguez and City Councilor Ian Mark Nacaya were offended by each others’ heckling, and eventually resorted to a fistfight to settle their conflict.

The students watching the debate at a university in Cagayan de Oro were dismayed by the scuffle, saying their elders should have behaved better and served as role models.

- Umagang Kay Ganda, 26 April 2013

2 supporters of Bacoor mayor shot dead

Unidentifed attackers shot dead two supporters of incumbent Bacoor, Cavite Mayor Strike Revilla and wounded one Thursday night.

Queen’s Row Central Barangay Captain Catherine Palabrica was wounded, while her brother-in-law Bobby Palabrica and Reynaldo Premero died when four unidentified assailants riding on two motorcycles blocked the barangay service vehicle they were riding and shot at them.

The assailants reportedly fled towards Molino, Cavite.

Investigators suspect politics to be the motive behind the attack.

- Umagang Kay Ganda, 26 April 2013

Phoenix to appeal DOJ ruling on P5-B smuggling case

by Kathleen A. Martin,

 ABS-CBNnews.com 

MANILA -- Phoenix Petroleum Philippines will appeal a Department of Justice decision recommending the indictment of the firm's chief for allegedly smuggling P5-billion worth of oil and petroleum products in 2010 and 2011.

"Either we will file for our part a Motion for Reconsideration or we will try to go to the court as long as rules of court allow it," Raymond Zorilla, vice president for external affairs at Phoenix Petroleum, told DZMM's Kabayan on Friday.

"Ang purpose naman po ng Motion for Reconsideration namin e baka may error sa paglabas ng reversal," Zorilla noted.

The DOJ resolution, dated April 24, reversed the dismissal of smuggling charges against Phoenix Petroleum's President and Chief Executive Dennis Ang Uy handed down by the same government agency in November 2011.

The most recent DOJ decision stemmed from the Bureau of Customs' Motion for Reconsideration filed earlier this year.

Zorilla said the resolution came as a surprise to the firm as it is currently preparing a rejoinder to file before the Justice department.

"Nagsampa sila (BOC) ng Motion for Reconsideration... tapos nag-file po kami ng comment, nag-file sila ng reply... Kami po ay magsasampa o magsusumite dapat ng rejoinder para pabulaanan lahat ng nakalagay sa reply [nila] pero habang nag-pe-prepare kami ng rejoinder e eto bumalaga na po at may reversal na," Zorilla recounted.

"Bureau of Customs filed their motion sometime in March and we are preparing our rejoinder according to the rules tapos ngayong April nga po lumabas [ang reversal]," he added.

Zorilla noted Phoenix Petroleum's Uy has not yet received his copy of the DOJ resolution as of this morning.

The firm, after news broke on Thursday afternoon, said in a disclosure it is confident Uy will be cleared of the smuggling charges.

"We are confident that Mr. Uy will again be cleared of all these baseless charges as all the company's importations are legitimate and legal," Phoenix Petroleum said.

Meanwhile, the Department of Finance on Friday said the recent DOJ ruling shows the government's commitment in going against smuggling.

"This resolution affirms the Aquino administration's commitment to fighting smuggling and upholding good governance," Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima said in a statement.

"This is a major breakthrough in curbing oil smuggling in the Philippines," he continued.

ARMM needs 13,000 cops on May 13; only 7,000 available

By Lore Mae Andong, 

ABS-CBN News Central Mindanao 

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines -- The Philippine National Police (PNP) in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanaothe (PNP-ARMM) is already ironing out its security preparations for the May 13 polls.

Regional Director Police Chief Superintendent Noel Delos Reyes told ABS-CBN News Wednesday that they have determined a need for 13,000 personnel to be deployed on election day.

However, there are only 7,000 policemen available in the region.

The official said the issue was already brought up to  higher authorities.

Other than the deficit in the police force, another problem is the inaccessibility of some polling centers such as those in far-flung barangays, where election paraphernalia need to be transported much earlier due to poor road conditions.

Delos Reyes said worst are those areas which need choppers just to deliver the election paraphernalia, including the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines.

The PNP-ARMM is now identifying which polling centers might be confronted with this problem.

Poor communication signal in other areas is also being looked into, according to the official.

They are set to conduct a simulation exercise days before the election to find out how fast their response will be and what areas they have to improve on.

The PNP-ARMM will also be in close coordination with the Coordinating Committees on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH). The latter will be tapped if there is a need for coordination, since policemen will be deployed in polling centers in areas controlled by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Delos Reyes said they have prepared 300 police personnel in case they need to serve in the elections as Board of Election Inspectors (BEIs).

He said they have received information that some BEIs may decline to serve due to their past experiences of threats and intimidation.

"We are just anticipating that there might be a need but they still have to undergo training," he said.

He explained, however, that this will still be the call of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), adding the PNP is just showing its willingness to serve as BEIs if needed.

A joint monitoring center will also be set up in the  compound of PRO-ARMM at Camp Bgen. Salipada K. Pendatun, Parang town in Maguindanao to watch and monitor election activities all over the region.

Delos Reyes said all of these will be a challenge to the police force.

He said that while they are preparing for a worse-case scenario, they are still hopeful that the midterm polls will be peaceful and fair.

He added the mid-terms polls will serve as a gauge of what may happen in the 2016 elections.

13 injured, 1 dead in Iloilo accident

MANILA, Philippines – Thirteen people were wounded while one person died in a vehicular accident in Jaro, Iloilo City.

A jeep, driven by Armand Villanueva, slammed into a parked truck in Iloilo City, wounding 13, including children, and killing Moreli Gregorios, 36. The victims were returning home to Jaro, Iloilo City after a beach outing in the nearby municipality of Dumangas.

Eyewitnesses said the jeep was speeding as it approached a curve in the road, an area which authorities have tagged an accident-prone area.

Investigators said Villanueva may have been drunk while driving, as there were bottles of alcoholic beverages found in the jeep.

The victims are continually being monitored at hospital.

ABS-CBNnews.com Posted at 04/25/2013 10:31 AM | Updated as of 04/25/2013 10:31 AM