by anyajulia | Oct 9, 2008 | Headlines, National News
KONGKRETO ug halapad nga plano aron sagubangon ang posibleng negatibo nga epekto sa napakyas nga pagtubos sa Amerika sa nagkahugno nga ekonomiya niini.
Kini ang mandu ni Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ngadto sa iyang mga tigdumala sa ekonomiya, sa kahingawa nga maka-epekto kini sa nasud.
Kahinumduman nga gisalikway sa Ubos Balay Balaoranan sa Amerika ang laraw nga tubson ang mga nabangkarota pinaagi unta sa Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008.
Pinaagi unta niini, mogasto ang Treasury Department ug $700 bilyones aron paliton ang mga kabtangan sa mga bangko sa Amerika nga napalukapa sa krisis nga mihasi sa tibuok kalibutan karon.
Hinuon, misalig sa Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya nga nakapangandam na ang Pilipinas sa ingon niining hulga human ipatuman ang pait nga mga reporma nga gani, nakapahagbong sa popularidad sa Pangulo nasud. (PIA/rachiu)
by anyajulia | Oct 2, 2008 | Headlines, National News
Ang pagkig-away batok sa korapsyon gamit ang Revenue Integrity Protection Service (RIPS) sa Department of Finance (DOF) mi-abot na sa Mindanao.
Gipangunahan ni DOF Undersecretary Atty. Estela V. Sales, gi-ubanan sa mga kadagkuan sa PNP, NBI ug nagkalain-laing sektor, milagda og usa ka kasunduan (MOA) nga suportahan ang mga programa kontra korapsyon sa kagamhanan.
Tumong sa RIPS, ang integridad sa mga “revenue generating” nga ahensya sa kagamhanan ubos sa DOF. Apil niini ang pag-ila, imbestigar ug pagsumpo sa korapsyon aron mamahimong luwas sa korapsyon ang kagamhanan sa pinakadaling panahon. (PIA/Bohol)
by anyajulia | Oct 2, 2008 | Headlines, National News
“Sumpu-on ang 40 ka tuig nga kagubot sa Mindanao ug motabang para sa kalinaw!” Mao kini ang gihagit ni Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ni Dir. Gen. Jesus Versoza, ang bag-ong napiling hepe sa Philippine Naitonal Police.
Si Versoza misanong sa pangatundanan niadtong Setyembre 27 sa Camp Crame.
Mapasaligon hinu-on ang presidente sa kapabilidad ni Versoza nga nadestino sa nagkalain-laing “hotspot” sa Mindanao sa wala pa mamahimong hepe sa lig-ong 125,000 nga kapolisan sa nasud.
Matud pa sa Presidente, kinahanglan ang interest sa katawhan ang mag-unang katungdanan sa PNP, dili lang pagluwas sa kadalanan sa krimen, ug apil ang pagsumpo sa mga kagubot nga nahitabo karon sa Mindanao.
Aron makab-ot ang kalinaw, ipatuman ang “disarmament, demobilization and rehabilitation” kon DDR nga pamaagi, dugang sa presidente.
Iya usab nga gi-awhag ang katawhan nga suportahan ang integrated transformation program (ITP) ug “reform program” sa PNP. (PIA/Bohol)
by anyajulia | Sep 29, 2008 | Headlines, Local News / Bohol Balita
LEGITIMATE illegal quarry operations or transport apprehension should be done at least with the presence of a deputized agent of the country’s environment secretary if the proper mining authority is absent.
Mines and GeoSciences Bureau -7 officer in charge Regional Director Roger de Dios stressed this to town mayors and local authorities attending the recent Stakeholder’s Forum for local chief executives given by the Regonal Minerals Development Council Thursday.
But that does not tie the enforcer’s hands because even without a deputized agent, they can stop the operations, identify the persons involved, gather data including the trucks plate numbers, driver and openly letting the illegal operators that the mayors know of the illegal operations.
Without a deputized agent to enforce the applicable mining laws, de Dios stressed that local chief executives can initiate moves to stop the operations, gather documentary evidence and report it to the local environment authorities.
These documents then should be forwarded to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) who would be sending in the right persons to investigate and apprehend.
The statement also surfaced amid unconfirmed reports that agents of the National Bureau of Investigation stepped on the toes of local officials when they raided a manganese quarry.
They allegedly did not coordinate with Capitol and its enforcement team; Task Force Kabukiran.
The sad thing, none of the NBI raiding team had a deputation order from the environment secretary, as what the law mandate.
In fact, another source asked why the NBI is apprehending when they would have been investigating and leave the apprehension to authorities.
He remarked that apprehending and seizing the quarry materials may end up against the government as the case later may actually slip the government’s hands out of technicality, as he pointed to the law.
Not all police officers are actually deputized, so they are technically not allowed to apprehend, he said.
After the violators have been ordered stopped, and yet operations continue, they can now be apprehended on grounds of disrespect to authority, de Dios added.
This would however be without prejudice to a formal case to be elevated by the environment agency if found they have indeed quarried illegally. (rachiu/PIA)
by anyajulia | Sep 29, 2008 | Headlines, Local News / Bohol Balita, National News
OIL PALM’S promise to farmers simply did not escape the keen business sense of Senator Mar Roxas who only has a word for it. Terrific.
Born form a family who knows business when it smells one, the bachelor senator saw the oil palm prospects and wants Bohol experience replicated 10 times all over the country, for the country’s poor.
Senator Roxas was all ears when he was told the oil palm is still the best edible oil yielding of all palm varieties and of all oil producing plants.
And for a farmer who owns a piece of land inhospitable to rice, the presentation from Philippine Agricultural Land Development and Mills Incorporated (PALM Inc) for palm oil farm just did seem to amaze the country’s trade eagle.
Senator Roxas breezed through Bohol September 26, 2008 to visit the PALM Inc and talk to farmers at the sprawling oil palm mills in Matin-ao Carmen town of this province.
Planting its business through contract growing schemes to farmers who can not plant rice in the rolling terrains of central Bohol, PALM Inc. eyes covering idle lands by putting up oil palms, giving technical expertise and facilitating credit for farm collaterals.
PALM Inc presentor and company’s Malaysian mills chief operations officer Chee Kong Chang however clarified that contract-growing invitation does not include farmers engaged in rice production.
Since early 1997, the company has contracted some 2100 families and has succeeded in putting up the green cover for 6500 hectares of otherwise idle lands, Chang reported to the senator.
“That would be roughly three hectares of oil palm farm per family,” Roxas interjected.
For an average rice farmer earning at most P10T a hectare, the oil palm, which gives out 10 tons of fresh fruit bunch after five years would mean P35T per hectare, Bohol mills operations Officer Joven Uy adds.
Now wanting to maximize its oil palm production, PALM Inc. eyes covering 20,000 hectares of Bohol’s idle lands to hit mill operations at 3 tons per hour, Chang told the Senate Committee on Trade and Commerce Chair.
The palm, which has a peak production at 9-15 years could hand in at least P90T a hectare a year, and could be productive for the next 25-30 years, he continued.
“That’s more that a rural bank manager could get,” Roxas remarked while doing quick math.
Seeing the promise himself, Roxas who aspires to push for the executive to consider palm oil production said he would be willing to make it his personal program and if by luck, a national government priority too.
On his part, he said he wants to make the government open up more credit facilities of farmers who opt for oil palm production.
He pointed out that the country could save so much on its dollar reserves when it imports between 150,000 to 200,000 tons of palm oil from Malaysia and other palm producing countries.
“That way we do not drain our dollar reserves,” Bohol Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Norris Oculam emphasized during a brief press conference.
So instead of buying, we are producing and our dollar reserves is used now to help more of our farmers, Sen. Roxas argued with Oculam.
Convinced of the prospects, Roxas, who has been into a crusade of alleviating the conditions of the country’s poor said he wants the Bohol farmers experience replicated, adding that should be 20,000 families with stabilized income, and still owning their farm lots. (rachiu/PIA)
DOING QUICK MATH. Senator Mar Roxas compares the net income of rice farmers and oil palm growers to discover the latter earns 7 to 8 times more than the average food producer. He then tells PALM Inc’s CK Chang he hope to push the executive to prop the country’s oil palm industry with credit facilities for growers needing to get a jumpstart. (PIA)
