by magnolia_eic | Aug 16, 2010 | Headlines, National News
Manila, Philippines – The compromise agreement between Hacienda Luisita and its farmers does not automatically resolve their dispute before the Supreme Court.
Jose Midas Marquez, SC spokesman, said there is a possibility that the Supreme Court would still act on the long-standing dispute between the management of the hacienda and its farmers.
“Once the court assumes jurisdiction over a particular case, a petition filed would not be moot just because a compromise has been reached among the parties. The case would still be subject to the final review of the court,” Marquez explained. The spokesman also gave the assurance that the court would review the compromise agreement and make sure it would be beneficial to both parties, adding that there have been previous agreements that are one-sided.
by magnolia_eic | Aug 16, 2010 | Headlines, National News
Manila, Philippines- It began at noon today. Filipinos can now interact with and send their sentiments to President Aquino and his officials.
Secretary Herminio Coloma of the Presidential Communications Office for Operations told station dzRB that the website www.president.gov would also carry social networking sites Facebook and Twitter.
Coloma added that there is a scheduled press briefing at 2p.m. today to further explain the program.
As for the “feedback mechanism” the President had promised in his June 30 inaugural, the social networking sites would not just be limited to Facebook and Twitter, but would include the highly popular YouTube.
Coloma is also encouraging the public to actively participate in the programs of the government, acknowledging them as important stakeholders.
by magnolia_eic | Aug 14, 2010 | Headlines, Local News / Bohol Balita
IS THERE any hope left for the scholar siblings of barangay officials?
The question seemingly hounds most of the sons and daughters of barangay officials who, according to law qualifies for scholarship grants that lets them through college paying only miscellaneous fees.
While there is a provision of law that mandates that, the glitch however is that the law is silent as to where the funds to pay for the grants could be taken.
That means, there is a law but there is no specific funding provision incorporated in the law that would allow the annual appropriation for such to be downloaded to the state universities and colleges upon where the scholars enroll.
Needless to say, students who believe they are qualified scholars are frustrated to know that there is no such budget for them.
Every semester, hundreds upon hundreds of government officials send kids as scholars to colleges and universities making some schools finally reveal the situation or decide to reject granting the scholarships for the above reason.
“We can not use the funds downloaded for operation and maintenance to pay for the scholars because it would affect our operational efficiency,” Dr. Elpidio Magante of Bohol Island State University (BISU) allegedly told the media.
At the Kita ug and Gobernador Friday, media representatives also asked Governor Edgar Chatto what he can do to remedy the situation.
Admitting he was certain the law puts no funding support to the scholarships, he said he has talked to the Commission on Higher Education and the state colleges and universities on the matter.
The last time that I know, CHED has promised to fix the matter, said Chatto.
During his weekly engagement at the Mansion with the media, the governor said he knew it was a problem.
He also revealed that he used to contribute in the pool for funds to pay for the government scholars during his term as congressman, just to make sure that Bohol scholars are funded.
In the past years, Bohol representatives pool support funds to pay for the scholars, but the schools may have to re-establish the linkage again to keep the funds coming, said observers who heard the governors statements. (racPIABohol)
by magnolia_eic | Aug 14, 2010 | Headlines, Local News / Bohol Balita
SNIFFING dogs, yes. But drug sniffing askals, why not?
Noting that an askal (asong kalye) at Camp Dagohoy has become his daily companion in his early morning conditioning runs, Bohol’s top cop said, perhaps training a native dog to sniff out drugs and contraband goods may work out.
If, without asking the dog to get after me, he regularly follows during my morning runs, then it shows that by training, the native stray dog can easily cope up with the routines.
Himself feeling the concern on the proliferation of illegal drugs that could only pass through the ports from Cebu, PSSupt Rodolfo Llorca said Bohol may be in dire need of drug sniffing dogs to weed out these contraband items being shipped to Bohol.
But knowing the staggering costs of acquiring imported dogs, keeping their food allocations and paying for their training and trainors, Llorca said he would like to know if training askals would be just as effective.
Llorca told the media during the Talakayan sa Isyung Pulis last Wednesday at the Camp Dagohoy that as a metro drug buster, he recalled the indispensability of sniffing dogs to hunt for drugs that may be easy to stash.
Once, he said his men were not able to apprehend the suspect who inserted sachets of drugs in her underwear absent a search warrant.
But with the succeeding raid, and with a sniffing dog in tow, police were able to confiscate the drugs as the courier knew the dog would just be as relentless as stripping her underwear off.
Llorca stressed that the presence of sniffing dogs at the ports of entry would be a big crime deterrence and would easily cut the technicality of search warrants that could not be had just as fast.
Dogs have an unusually keen sense of smell that as soon as they distinguish the scent of the item to be searched, from bombs to drugs, they could be relentless until they can find the item sough after.
Over this, a more thorough study on the feasibility of using native dogs as sniffers over German shepherds, Labradors and St. Bernands may prove a better bargain for Bohol.
Rather than seeing the problem of stray dogs as causes of too many road accidents and the spread of rabies, using them as sniffing dogs may increase their use and would allow them to be truly worth the monicker as man’s best friend. (rac/PIABohol)
by magnolia_eic | Aug 14, 2010 | Headlines, Local News / Bohol Balita
DOUBLE or multiple registrants have surfaced at random and it is all because of the AFIS.
Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) the program being used by the government’s poll agency in registering voters automatically matches the print traces of a single individual and raises red flags when similar fingerprint match surfaces, explains Atty Ariel Selma of the city Commission on Elections office.
Because of the AFIS, more than 400 voters from Tagbilaran alone have popped red flags when their prints were cross-matched while re-registering elsewhere.
Atty. Selma however was quick to add that the red flags were noted when former Tagbilaran City voters resettled and registered anew in their new precincts of choice.
Most of these red flags were not deliberate as instead of just requesting for transfer of records, they re-registered so the computer program picks them out.
A case he cited was for a Tagbilaranon who was demanded Comelec records in support of his employment abroad.
Having been a registered voter in Tagbilaran and being in Manila at that time, the concerned instead filed for a new registration, not knowing that the computer can pick him out due to his available and valid registration in Tagbilaran, Selma narrated.
Also, some of the 400 cases in Tagbilaran were traced to women who failed to request for change of status after marriage and registered instead as new voters with a different family name.
Names and status, even faces easily change, but the fingerprints stick to truly identify the person, Selma said further elaborating on the peculiarity of the fingerprint as a true identifying mark of a person.
There are signs that people who may be involved in these red-flags are innocent, but in some cases, as this is criminal offense, it may not be too far-fetched when COMELEC would file appropriate suits, Selma added. (rac/PIABohol)
