Monthly Archives: July 2012

MANILA, Philippines – The economy is projected to grow by six to seven percent next year and accelerate to 7.5 to 8.5 percent in 2016, according to Budget and Management Secretary Florencio Abad, citing the latest macroeconomic assumptions approved by the interagency Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC).

MANILA, Philippines – Bank workers want to be part of the decision-making process regarding bank closures, takeovers and liquidations.

General Santos City in South Cotabato province serves as prowling grounds for 30 individuals with full-blown HIV-AIDS—most of them are commercial sex workers and some are professionals.

DAVAO CITY, July 9 (PIA) — A proposed safety and health policy to be imposed in all renewable energy (RE) facilities would ensure protection program for the workers.

MANILA – President Benigno Aquino III’s new socioeconomic planning chief on Monday said Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s term as president coincided with the Philippines’ “lost decade,” a period marked by moderate economic growth coupled with high income inequality.

MANILA, Philippines – Filipinos are spending between four hours and five hours a day in front of television sets making the Philippines among the longest TV viewers in Asia, a survey conducted by Kantar Media. In a roundtable discussion, Kantar Media general manager Gabriel Buluran said the National Rural Ratings Data June 2012 survey showed…

MANILA, Philippines – The Aquino administration is reviewing the compensation structure for heads and executives of government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) who sit in various private corporations in their capacity as GOCC executives, a ranking official said.

MANILA, Philippines – More workers in Metro Manila are likely to enjoy their salary increase as few commercial establishments sought exemption from the mandated wage increase, a Department of Labor and Employment official said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines may see some improvement in its competitiveness ranking this year amid efforts being taken to prevent corruption, address the infrastructure gap and improve business processes, the National Competitiveness Council (NCC) said.

When Mark Twain learned about news reports claiming he had died, the American icon replied with the famous line: “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated”. In like manner, representatives of the textile and garments industry have recently come together to state for the record that the industry may be struggling but it is…

MANILA, Philippines – Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) can now ensure better health for their families and enjoy a worry-free stay abroad once they become a member of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp., an official of the agency said yesterday. PhilHealth executive officer Eduardo Banzon said at a cost of only P7.50 a day, OFWs can…

Before we could see any signs of immediate relief from rising electricity rates, we should brace for more increases in power prices in the next four years. In a public notice issued last week by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), we were alerted about a rate increase petition filed by the National Power Corp. (Napocor).…

Even before the Palace releases today the details of the Executive Order (EO) on mining signed by President Aquino last Thursday, various groups assailed it as being no different from previous policies that do not address the root of the conflict between mining operations and the communities where the projects are located.

NO EFFORT TO AMEND CONSTITUTION WITHOUT NOY BACKING — JOKER Efforts to tinker with the Constitution have been resurrected and a meeting between Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and Speaker Feliciano Belmonte has been scheduled to discuss possible changes that can be introduced in the 1987 Charter, Sen. Joker Arroyo said.

(Last of two parts) The story of the war brides’ experiences is replete with accounts of abandonment, neglect and discrimination. Historian Caridad Concepcion Vallangca, in her book “The Second Wave: Pinay & Pinoy (1945-1960),” narrated the plight of some brides who did not make it to the United States as their GI (government issue) husbands…

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO—The Authorities should consider the slain Dutch development worker Wilhelmus JJ Lutz Geertman to be a victim of extrajudicial killing due to his involvement in campaigns against landlessness, mining, logging and a large freeport project in Aurora province, his brother said on Saturday.

“You can’t handle the truth.” This was the famous Jack Nicholson line in the movie A Few Good Men after the prosecutor, played by Tom Cruise, demanded: “I want the truth.” In like manner, we Filipinos want growth, but can we handle growth? That’s something we should all ask ourselves and seriously ponder.

Manila, Philippines – The Philippines offers several investment opportunities for mining firms but key risks which can curtail projects from taking-off remain such as an ongoing moratorium on issuance of permits, provincial bans on mining and new rules in getting the indigenous people’s consent for a project, according to a British firm which specializes in…

Manila, Philippines – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) yesterday appealed to graduating high school students and those who have yet to enroll in college to try “unpopular” courses.

Manila, Philippines – Labor groups and former employees of the defunct Pantranco North Express are considering filing graft charges against Transportation and Communications Secretary Manuel Roxas II for defying a Supreme Court (SC) order when he stopped the sale of 489 franchises to bus firms affiliated with the Victory Liner Group.

CANDON CITY, Ilocos Norte/PIAT, Cagayan — The campaign for child labor-free barangays stepped up a gear, particularly in northern Luzon, with support from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and national leaders that have anchored on the theme, “Pagtutulungan, Pagpapalaya sa mga Batang Manggagawa (Cooperation in Freeing Children from Hard Labor).”

Boracay Island in Aklan, made world-famous by its powdery white-sand beaches, has been named by the international magazine Travel+Leisure as the world’s best island destination for 2012.

The President’s formula might be working, but his allies in the Senate say the results are not enough. Sen. Ralph Recto said the credit rating upgrade givenby the international rating agency Standard & Poor (S&P)’s to the country poses a challenge for the Aquino administration to create needed jobs and increase the size of the…

They’re still at it, criminals on the internet, on the lookout for the easy-to-gyp, or the lonely. The easy-to-gyp fall for hoaxes that come via e-mail, letters such as these. The first is purportedly from Nanding Josef, head of the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Tanghalang Pilipino, and it goes: “Apologies for having to reach…

Manila, Philippines – President Aquino gave assurance yesterday that his administration was working to change the mindset of local government units (LGUs) and empower them so they would become more business-friendly.

GENERAL SANTOS CITY, Philippines – Pupils in villages near a gold-rich mountain in Maitum, Sarangani, skip classes on Fridays to attend to what they deem is a more important task – hauling soil and stones from mine tunnels.

MANILA, Philippines – President Aquino confirmed yesterday the imminent coalition of the ruling Liberal Party with the Nacionalista Party and the Nationalist People’s Coalition to field common candidates in the May 2013 senatorial elections.

MANILA, Philippines – Vehicular accidents have claimed the lives of almost 600 persons nationwide during the past six months of the year, the Highway Patrol Group (HPG) said yesterday.

It was just a question of when. Even as the current Ford Philippines president Randy Krieger took over local operations more than a year ago, the writing was already on the wall.