by anyajulia | Sep 18, 2009 | Election 2010, Headlines, National News
“Illegal” says former house speaker Jose De Venecia over Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro’s nomination as Lakas-Kampi-CMD presidential standard-bearer for 2010 elections
“Why would they call a national executive committee meeting when there’s yet a Lakas- Kampi-CMD merger, so the meeting is illegal”, de Venecia harped.
Imagine choosing a presidential and vice-presidential candidate when the party is not yet accredited, registered and recognized by the Comelec,” said the former president of Lakas-CMD.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has yet to officially recognize the party, which merged with Kabalikat sa Malayang Pilipino (KAMPI) recently.
On De Venecia’s point, Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs Gabby Claudio explained that the September 17 gathering was not a convention but only a part of their selection process.
“The meeting of the national executive committee of Lakas-Kampi-CMD yesterday was not a convention. That was very clear. It’s part of the selection process of the party and we said the essence of that selection process is in the conduct of democratic consultations among the leaders of the party,” he said.
Calaudio, Lakas-CMD secretary general said he is optimistic that the poll body will grant their petition to accredit the merger of the two parties.
“We expect the Comelec to be fair and just in giving due favorable action to the petition of Lakas-Kampi for the immediate registration and accreditation,” he said.
Claudio noted that he finds it ironic that De Venecia is the one questioning the merger when he was the one pushing for it before.
“He was the prime mover of the merger. He signed a document on the merger of the two parties as early as 1998. Since then, he had been pushing for the official merger of the two parties until he lost the speakership and the presidency of Lakas,” Claudio said.
The Comelec is set to issue its decision on the Lakas-Kampi-CMD merger within the month. (PIA)
by anyajulia | Sep 18, 2009 | Headlines, Local News / Bohol Balita
BOHOL aligns three major agrarian reform community (ARC) projects for foreign funding and leading officials are confident the province keeps an ace in its sleeves in accessing funds for its implementation.
The hidden card, provincial agrarian reform officers Atty. Johnson Sinco and Dr. Tony del Socorro point out, is the convergence formula implemented by Bohol leaders.
Convergence formula is a strategy of cost sharing in the implementation of projects where the beneficiary local government shares in the costs of the project with the funding agency and the community people’s organizations.
Here, a barangay government fund is propped up with the share from the provincial government, other government agency in the area concerned with battling poverty.
Even the people’s organization puts up labor counterpart, explains Atty. Sinco during the recent Kapihan sa PIA.
This way, the people realize that they too have ownership of the project and this improves the chances of communities taking care of the project sustainability, he added.
During the recent forum on the air in time for Department of Agrarian Reform Bohol Family Day, both officials reasoned out that it is not the sorry state of the communities that gave Bohol the edge.
While massive poverty in contiguous communities is one major criteria for allotting DAR CARP project funding, both officials also agree that funding agencies find a bias on good track records and in really spilling over development to areas needing one.
This year, according to Dr. del Socorro, Negros Oriental tails Bohol with two project proposals while Cebu and Siquijor each have one.
Eyed as funding agency for this year’s identified sites in agrarian cluster communities is Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), PARO Sinco said.
Over the fears of farmers about the end of the government social justice program, DAR is again in communities to continue the mission to distribute public lands to landless tenants.
Modeling for the government, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, in fact placed her husband’s vast estates under the land reform program.
Presidential Economic Spokesperson Gary Olivar said the land reform program is part of the 10-point agenda of the President and her administration.
According to Olivar, the President, by distributing the land owned by her husband, Jose Miguel Arroyo, demonstrates that she is serious about implementing the law and doesn’t matter if her family gets hurt in the process. (PIA)
by anyajulia | Sep 18, 2009 | Headlines, Major Events, National News
Mayon Volcano spews three minor ash explosions around 5:37 AM yesterday (September 17). This is according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
Phivolcs recorded the ash explosions lasted for about three minutes producing a brownish ash column that rose to a maximum height of about 700 meters above the crater and drifted to the southwest direction.
“The explosion is a minor one and Alert Level 2 remains in effect over the volcano,” said Alex Baloloy, Phivolcs science research analyst.
According to its latest bulletin issued 8:00 AM today, Phivolcs said that its seismic instruments recorded eleven (11) volcanic earthquakes during the past 24 hours.
Phivolcs strongly recommends that the 6-km radius Permanent Danger Zone (PDZ) around the volcano and the 7-km Extended Danger Zone (EDZ) on the southeast flank of the volcano remain off-limits to human activities. (PIA)
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by anyajulia | Sep 18, 2009 | Election 2010, Headlines, National News
Ninety members of the House of Representatives signed a manifesto endorsing Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” C. Teodoro Jr. as presidential candidate and administration bet.
According to the organizers of the meeting,they are throwing their wholehearted support to Teodoro because they genuinely believed that he possesses the leadership, integrity, credibility, competence and capability to be the country’s next president.
Zambales Rep. Mitos Magsaysay said that it is high time for the members of the House to have their voices heard as far as choosing the administration’s standard bearer is concerned.
Part of the manifesto signed by the lawmakers states that they “fully believe that he (Teodoro) is the leader who can most effectively carry out the vision, mission and ideology of the Party, best lead the nation in the coming years, who can reform and transform Philippine society and bring about lasting peace, justice and meaningful progress in our nation.” (PIA)
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by anyajulia | Sep 18, 2009 | Foreign Exchange, Headlines
To solidify the country’s bid for an observer status with the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC). This is the main agenda of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s Turkey visit when she meets and updates the OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu on the progress in the Mindanao peace process.
President Arroyo will also take the opportunity to thank Turkey President Abdullah Gul for his nation’s support of the Philippines ‘ bid for an observer status in OIC, which is aimed at ending the separatist movement in Southern Philippines.
The President’s visit is expected to strengthen economic ties with Turkey, which is the 16th largest economy in the world and the 6th in Europe. Turkey is an emerging market for Philippine exports, alongside India, South Africa, Russia, and Ukraine.
The Turkey visit is also a chance for President Arroyo to forward the welfare of an estimated 5,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).
From Turkey, the President will proceed to the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia. (PIA)
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