Monthly Archives: March 2010

CEBU, Philippines – Nacionalista Party senatorial candidate Gilbert Remulla said lingering poverty and hunger hamper the country’s goal to provide access to primary education for millions of school-age children despite the existing law on free elementary and high school education.

At least 200 Filipinos in Saudi Arabia who were imprisoned for petty offenses were granted pardon and subsequently repatriated to the Philippines since December 2009, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported Saturday. Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Esteban Conejos Jr. said that the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh and the Philippine Consulate General…

MANILA, Philippines – The Social Security System (SSS), the state-run pension fund for private employees, has expanded the repayment period for overdue contributions to encourage employers to settle their obligations under an amnesty period which will run until July 31.

MANILA, Philippines – Banana growers in Davao have gained the support of the Church in their appeal to the government not to ban aerial spraying for banana plants in the region.

CLARK FREEPORT, Pampanga , Philippines  – Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales said some local candidates seem to regard killing their rivals as a less costly alternative to cheating in the country’s first automated elections this May.

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is eyeing the distribution of female condoms in workplaces to protect women workers from HIV/AIDS infection.

IN JULY 2009, the administration admitted that it had failed in fighting corruption according to the target set by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), but only by a thin margin. It declared it’s optimism to pass the MDG corruption score card by 2010.

Several controversies in the human rights department and various unsavory political events have demoted the status of “freedom in the Philippines” during the years of the Arroyo administration as assessed by Freedom House. From “free” we are now only “partly free,” according to the studies of the nonprofit organization co-founded, during the rise of Hitler’s…

Working to get a US$500-million anti-corruption grant from Millennium Challenge Corporation How the Arroyo administration has been failing in its efforts to meet the Millennium Development Goals (there is a 2015 deadline) is what media have been focusing on. Their facts are accurate. These negative reports also include praise for the administration where it has…

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Thursday signed into law a package of tax breaks and spending designed to give the US a jobs boost by encouraging the private sector to start hiring again.

While we’re at it, we might as well fix the problem where labor always demands salary increases, but the system simply does not address the truth and reality of business and economics.

POWER industry players are taking steps to augment the electricity supply in Mindanao. A German-backed consortium operating a coal-fired power plant on the island is looking at expanding its capacity amid the region’s power crisis.

There was a sharp increase in the number of diagnosed HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) cases in the country in the last three years, the Department of Health said on Friday.

Militant student groups revealed that more than 95 schools all over the county continue to collect graduation fees from students and parents despite repeated warnings by the Department of Education (DepEd).

Workers may as well pin their hope on the new administration  for a new wave of salary increases as it is unclear whether the Arroyo government can give in to their demand before Labor Day.

The government has confirmed an increase of almost half a billion pesos in damage to the farm and fishery sectors caused by lingering effects of the El Niño weather phenomenon.

Authorities hearing the case of the “Morong 43” should give due consideration to recent findings of the Department of Health and the Philippine Medical Association (PMA) that the detained individuals were not legitimate health workers.

MANILA, Philippines – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said there is room for further consolidation among local banks in order to strengthen the capital base, asset quality, and client base of major players in the local banking industry.

NEW YORK (AP) — FedEx says the global economic recovery is broadening, as Asia continues to show strong growth and the US economy gains steam.

MANILA, Philippines – All political parties have problems with funding, according to the pro-administration Lakas-Kampi-CMD.

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

THE Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) will soon release guidelines for companies on how to address the occurrence of Human immunodeficiency virus/Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/Aids) in the workplace.

Alarmed by the 2008 rise in automotive crash-related death and injury, the Philippine government in 2009 entered into a national road safety partnership with civil society groups and private companies. It is called the Philippines Global Road Safety Partnership (PGRSP).

MANILA, Philippines—Majority of private business leaders in the Philippines reported higher stress levels over the last year but they were a bit better off than most of overseas peers as the local stress barometer fell below global average for the first time in four years, based on the Grant Thornton International Business Report 2010.

THE Philippine export sector sees semiconductor and electronics investments surging amid expectations of a quick recovery in demand.Senen Perlada, Export Development Council executive director, said the sector may enjoy a “V-shaped” recovery, helping jack up the country’s total merchandise exports by about a tenth this year.

BRUSSELS: The European Union Wednesday (Thursday in Manila) accused its major powers of running away from bulging government deficits, as Greece said it could still seek IMF help if European backing did not ease its debt crisis.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) central office has signed with the new leadership of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) a memorandum of agreement to ensure an intensified implementation of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) in the poverty-laden ARMM communities.

MULTILATERAL and private institutions will be pledging billions of dollars to finance various initiatives of the Philippines to mitigate climate change, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Thursday.

At least 120 representatives from the 118 member-countries of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), including the Philippines, have vowed to protect the rights of migrants at the conclusion of the Special Non-Aligned Movement Ministerial Meeting on Interfaith Dialogue for Peace and Development in Manila on Thursday.