Monthly Archives: December 2011

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

MANILA, Philippines – Impeach was the word of the year, with the former ombudsman and the Chief Justice being the target of political proceedings, both being identified with the past Arroyo administration. President Aquino could not be swayed from his straight path, opting to fulfill his campaign promise of going after those who wasted the…

MANILA, Philippines – Starting next week, millions of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) will pay twice the amount they are paying in insurance premiums to the state-owned PhilHealth Corp., Batangas Rep. Mark Llandro Mendoza revealed yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – The “problem” the government wants to have more than anything now is a wider budget deficit. It’s ironic because for years, the government has been trying to narrow the budget gap and the previous administration even attempted to balance the budget by 2010 supposedly.

Twenty-three provinces nationwide were liberated from the influence of the communist New People’s Army (NPA) during the first year of implementation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) anti-insurgency internal peace and security plan (IPSP) “Bayanihan.”

The Supreme Court (SC) turned down an appeal filed by paper manufacturer PICOP Resources Inc. (PRI) in a labor case involving employees who were fired after they changed allegiances in the labor group which would represent them in the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with the company.

The Philippines’ adept response to the succeeding waves of high-impact global events this year—from the Arab Spring to the worldwide economic and debt crises—has “underscored our resilience as a nation,” according to Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario. In a statement, Del Rosario on Thursday noted that “the passing year rained extraordinary challenges.” But, he said,…

MANILA, Philippines — Ninety-eight percent of applicants registered in the country’s online job matching system, the Phil-JobNet, prefer local jobs even as employment opportunities in the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector continue to remain robust.

The Corona impeachment case seems to be shaping up as a publicity contest between the Lower House of Representatives represented by 188 Congressmen/women who signed the Complaint and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court who is the accused in said complaint. The course of the action has turned into how to win the hearts…

MANILA, Philippines – The “problem” the government wants to have more than anything now is a wider budget deficit.

THE Commission on Higher Education (CHED) on Thursday said that it might close down popular courses being offered by higher education institutions (HEIs)—accounting, education and nursing—next year.

CEBU, Philippines – After fifteen years, the Supreme Court had finally affirmed the order of the Court of Appeals regarding the labor dispute involving the mass termination of hospital employees who participated in the strike and picketing activities at the Visayas Community Medical Center (VCMC).

MANILA, Philippines – The Aquino administration has worked itself up towards a favorable rating in terms of addressing energy-related concerns and issues in 2011, as challenges remain at its midst in 2012 and the years to come.

IT is not fair for the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to overpay beneficiaries of its Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program because of the unsystematic database of the poor recipient families it has kept for the program, the Commission on Audit (COA) said.

MANILA, Philippines – Despite gloomy global economic forecasts and a string of natural calamities that hit the country this year, nine out of 10 Filipinos still face the New Year with hope, the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed.

The Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) has collected at least P300 million from their extortion activities throughout the country this year, a whopping 200 percent increase compared to “revolutionary taxes” gained by the communist group in 2010.

A senior member of the House of Representatives yesterday called on the Aquino administration to recall a decision by the Philhealth Corp. to make the cost of government health insurance restrictive to millions of overseas Filipino workers (OFW).

The Senate had its fair share of excitement in 2011, including the return of three senators to the 23-member chamber and a flurry of inquiries, which catapulted several personalities to notoriety. In the first week of January, detained Sen. Senator Antonio Trillanes IV was given amnesty and joined the Senate the first time since he…

Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago sought the conduct of an inquiry in the upper chamber, in aid of legislation, on the reported alarming increase of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections in the country, it was gathered yesterday.

The discussion of pleasurable aspects of living continues with a general comparison of conditions of 20 or even 30 years ago with today. The topic shifts from food on the table to conveniences that permit us to be personally productive or more satisfied with consumption that we enjoy.

MANILA, Philippines – Even before its 2014 target deadline, the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) has maintained its position to distribute the remaining 1.093 million hectares of agricultural lands under the agrarian reform program. Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio de los Reyes said the budget for landowners’ compensation is no longer much of a problem unlike…

THE Department of Labor and Employment on Tuesday urged Filipinos working in Syria to come home, saying that there are high-paying jobs awaiting them. She added that the government will assist overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) repatriated from Syria.

Communist rebels earned at least P300 million from their extortion activities this year, and had perpetrated criminal activities that left 56 civilians dead, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said Wednesday, citing its yearend report.

MANILA, Philippines – The House of Representatives has approved on third and final reading a bill prohibiting the collection of fees from nurse trainees by public and private hospitals and similar institutions. House Bill 5445 seeks to put an end to the practice of some hospitals that charge trainees huge amounts, ranging from P10,000 to…

MANILA, Philippines – The agricultural sector in 2011 felt the full impact of climate change, which thwarted plans by the Department of Agriculture (DA) to raise rice and corn production this year, then moving on to rice self-sufficiency by 2013.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue has increased its collection target for taxes on self-employed individuals for next year amid improved compliance so far this year. For next year, the bureau is eyeing to raise P222.28 billion from professionals, 15 percent higher than this year’s projected collection of P192.72 billion.

An official of the Bureau of Customs were now facing charges following the complaint filed by a massage therapist before the office of the Ombudsman. In her sworn affidavit dated November 17, 2011, obtained by The Manila Times, Liberty Felipe of Tarlac sued Maj. Ramon Policarpio and Asi Dexter Binuya et. al. of the Enforcement…

THE WORLD saw the Philippine foreign office take strong policy stances in 2011 on the protection of Filipinos put at risk in the Middle East and the protection of Philippine sovereignty in parts of the Spratly island group that clearly belong to Palawan province. The Spratlys are in the West Philippine Sea (also called the…

Despite the supposed all-out effort of the Aquino administration to stamp out graft, experts from the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), Institute for Solidarity in Asia (ISA), has identified in a forum, corruption as the persistent obstacle in the development of the local property market.