Press Statement from AFP and PNP on the Clash in Inabanga, Bohol
Press Statement from the AFP Central Command and PNP PRO7 on the clash between armed men and the government forces.
Unidentified Armed Men Clashes with Inabanga Police
BREAKING: (Updated April 11, 4:30PM) Firefight erupted in a Barangay Napo in Inabanga, Bohol on April 11, 2017 between unidentified armed men and local police. More than 10 armed men reportedly arrived the previous night on three pump boats. Various elements from the Philippine National Police and Philippine Army are currently dealing with the situation. The firefight started at about 5:00AM.
The armed men reportedly have concrete barricades and high powered rifles at Sitio Ilaya and Canlinte, Barangay Napo. They are reportedly also have the high ground in the encounter.
Superintendent George Vale, Head of Police Community Relations Office at the Bohol Police Provincial Office,
said he could not determine yet if the armed men were part of a group who planned to stage kidnappings in Central Visayas.
The area unfortunately has difficult terrain with poor communications signal, said SPO1 Ramata of the Inabanga Police. Ambulance and other emergency service are already positioned at the town main area. Reinforcements have proceeded to area. A helicopter was spotted at the area also.
“Law enforcement agencies have been on high alert including security units of Hotels & Resorts who are also closely coordinated wd police authorities,” said Bohol Gov. Edgar Chatto said in a statement.
At 1:20PM, unverified reports of casualties, 10 from the armed men and 4 from the government were reported over the local radios. The identity of the armed men are still unknown.
The motorboats used by the armed men were reported to have double engines. Inabanga is facing Cebu.
Bohol Chronicle Manager Peter Dejaresco spoke live on the local radio DYRD-AM and said that Col. Natividad of the Philippine Army has confirmed 1 PNP and 3 Army casualties. Airstrike is being considered as an option but will depend on the assessment of the personnel on the ground.
The motorboats of the armed men were destroyed by the military to prevent them from escaping. The Philippine Army has already sealed all possible exits.
Mayor Roygie Jumamoy also spoke on DYRD-AM and mentioned that the armed men went directly to Barangay Napo via the river mouth. Barangay Napo is about 15 kilometers via the river from the open sea. The sides of the river are full of nipa palms which gave the armed men some cover when they penetrated the area.
Jumamoy said that graduation ceremonies of the schools have been suspended at this time.
Update April, 11, 2017 3:00PM, from DYRD-AM. The military has employed air strikes on the position of the armed men believed to be members of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG). Six bombs have been dropped so far.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa confirmed the presence of suspected Abu Sayyaf group members in Barangay Napo, Inabanga, Bohol.
Dela Rosa said the PNP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines have already launched a joint operation against the Abu Sayyaf members who are believed to have occupied some concrete houses in the location of the firefight.
“So far hindi pa cleared ang area, naipit ang mga kalaban sa concrete na bahay. Nag-occupy sila ng tatlong bahay,” he said.
Update April, 11, 2017 4:30PM, from DYRD-AM: A military cargo plane landed in Tagbilaran City at around 4:00PM with reinforcement troops. About three trucks of reinforcement soldiers are now on their way from the airport to the area of the firefight. The number of armed men are now estimated to be around 60.
During a live report from Willy Majestrado over DYRD-AM, gunshots, including that from machine guns, can be heard from the background.
This post will be updated as reports are gathered.
PH advances ASEAN’s bid to engage Japan on innovation, MSME dev’t, regional partnership
TOKYO—Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary and 2017 ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) chair Ramon Lopez reported that the Philippines successfully advanced ASEAN’s objective to engage Japan on innovation, the inclusivity of the region’s micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) during the AEM Roadshow to Japan from 6 to 8 April 2017.
The ASEAN Delegation with ASEAN Secretary-General Le Luong Minh held a substantive discussion with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Minister Hiroshige Seko of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and key local government officials to discuss measures to enhance ASEAN-Japan economic relations.
The Delegation also met with the Parliamentary Association for the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) and some economic organizations such as the ASEAN–Japan Business Council and the ASEAN Business Advisory Council.
MSME development
“We learned how Japanese start-ups make an impact on the economy through their innovative and creative ideas,” said Sec. Lopez, whose thrust at the domestic front is to empower MSMEs through an innovation-led, productivity-oriented framework.
The Delegation traveled to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Wakayama and gathered insights on how Japan managed to gain its stature as a global leader for innovation. Specific sites visited were Hitachi Ltd., Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Panasonic Konosuke Matsushita Museum and Shima Seiki Manufacturing Ltd.
The Delegation also met Osaka Governor Ichirō Matsui and Osaka Mayor Hirofumi Yoshimura. The Osaka Prefecture and Osaka City governments have been long partners with Philippine government agencies in promoting investments of their small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Philippines. Osaka City has become Manila’s Business Partner City since October 1989. On the other hand, Osaka Prefecture is the first prefecture to sign an investment promotion Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) in January 2016.
In September 2017, Osaka City will organize a business matching event between Japanese and the Filipino SMEs in automotive and aerospace parts manufacturing and electronics contract manufacturing.
Sec. Lopez also shared that parallel endeavors from ASEAN and Japanese business communities to create lasting partnerships with MSMEs were observed during the business matching event held on 7 April, on the sidelines of the 2017 AEM Roadshow.
Also on the sidelines, the ASEAN-Japan Trade and Industry Ministers reaffirmed commitment to strengthen economic and industrial cooperation, in line with the ASEAN-Japan Strategic Economic Cooperation Roadmap.
“Included in the cooperation is to connect ASEAN SMEs with the global value chain, where SMEs will be supported thru capacity building, networking and business matching and enabling of new industries and start-ups,” Sec. Lopez said.
Innovation, regional economic partnership
During an informal AEM–METI consultations, the Delegation discussed ASEAN-Japan economic relations, in particular the ongoing RCEP negotiations. Sec. Lopez reiterated that with RCEP, the current ASEAN market of 600 million could expand to more than 3 billion, thus representing a huge integrated market base. ASEAN is committed to work with Japan and other RCEP participating countries to come up with a modern, comprehensive, high quality, and mutually beneficial agreement.
Meanwhile, ASEAN-Japan Trade and Industry Ministers agreed to promote innovation and entrepreneurship, creating new industries, as well as social agenda on mobility, energy and healthcare thru cutting-edge technology. Business collaborations started with the launch of ASEAN-Japan Innovation network, according to the trade chief.
The Ministers welcomed the proposal of Philippines to organize regular ASEAN-Japan Trade Fair to promote the best of products in the region and the respective branding as well.
On RCEP, the Ministers also considered the possibility of having phased agreement or a building-block approach, completing areas on trade in goods and services, rules of origin, trade facilitation and intellectual property rights.
“RCEP aims to be inclusive and innovation-led since it will include provisions that will support MSME development, e-commerce, human resource and capacity building, education, trade, finance, business matching, technical cooperation and market promotion and safety nets. A special study is being conducted to find ways to reduce non-tariff measures and remaining trade barriers,” he added.
PH’s ASEAN chairmanship
With the Philippines taking chairmanship of ASEAN 2017, the theme is focused on “Partnering for Change, Engaging the World.” The Economic Ministers are promoting “inclusive, innovation-led growth” for shared prosperity in the region in relation to the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC).
The three strategic measures to achieve this theme include increasing trade and investment, integrating MSMEs in the global value chains and developing an innovation-driven economy.
On behalf of ASEAN Economic Ministers, Sec. Lopez thanked the Japanese Government for the successful implementation of the Roadshow.
He also looked forward to welcoming Minister Seko in Manila in September for the AEM-METI Consultations and Prime Minister Abe in November for the ASEAN-Japan Summit.
DTI ENSURES PROMPT, EFFICIENT REDRESS FOR CONSUMERS
With high regard for consumers, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) commits in providing the consuming public with a prompt and efficient resolution of their complaints.
The DTI-Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau (FTEB) reported that from January to February this year, the department received 1,460 complaints — all of which fully settled.
Of the 1,460 complaints, 337 were dismissed, 274 were archived, 269 were endorsed to other government agencies, 53 were escalated to adjudication, and 527 were resolved early through mediation.
DTI-FTEB Director-in-Charge Ferdinand Manfoste noted that 98.67 percent of those complaints resolved early through
mediation were acted on within 10 working days only.
“The DTI is highly committed to working on a complaint on time and efficiently. To do this, we firmly adhere to our Department Administrative Order [DAO] No. 13-02, Series of 2013,” Manfoste stressed. Section 4 of Rules II and III of the said DAO states that resolution of complaints falling under the DTI’s jurisdiction shall not exceed 10 working days by mediation while 20 working days by adjudication.
Manfoste also pointed out that there were 269 complaints endorsed to other government agencies because those did not fall under the jurisdiction of the DTI. He assured, though, that these were given with necessary actions by the lawful agencies.
Meanwhile, the director-in-charge explained that 53 complaints were escalated to adjudication because some complainants and respondents failed to reach an agreement during the mediation stage.
But Manfoste ensures that, as much as possible, complaints are amicably settled during mediation stage to save both parties’ time and expenses.
One consumer, who asked for help regarding his request for a refund from a company, thanked the department and said, “I hope you will continue exercising your function to protect consumers like me.”
For more information on the services of the DTI, log-on to http://www.dti.gov.ph
NEGOSYO CENTER BOHOL CONDUCTS CONSUMER AND BUSINESS EDUCATION SEMINAR
DTI Bohol and Negosyo Center Bohol conducted a Business and Consumer Education Seminar last March 30, 2017 at Bohol Investment Promotion Center. It is part of DTIs advocacy for business and consumer protection and is aimed at increasing public awareness about consumer rights and responsibilities and other trade and industry laws.
The seminar was held at the Mezzanine Floor of the Bohol Investment Promotion Center, Tagbilaran City.
Mr. Miguel Abuyabor of DTI Bohol was the resource person.
