Good News....

[omad]

Thursday, April 06, 2006
Cebu to host int’l congress

More than 200 delegates from 40 countries around the world will be coming to Cebu this month for an international congress against terrorism.

Cebu Gov. Garcia said that Gen. Benjamin Defensor, former chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and head of the country’s task force against terrorism, met with her two days ago to coordinate for the activity.

‘Beautiful island’

“This is a very major international event on this beautiful island, and a National Government endeavor, so Cebu will just support it in every way we can,” she said.

Garcia said the Cebu Provincial Government will host a dinner for the delegates of the international congress, which will run for three days this third week of April.

The event will be held at the Shangri-la Hotel in Mactan Island.

A major official from Washington in the United States will be among the delegates, to be composed of officials involved in the campaign against terrorism in each of the participating countries.

The gathering is an offshoot of what was discussed in the last meeting of Apec-member countries,” Garcia said.

“We are really becoming not just a convention capital but summit capital, and not just in the country or region, but the world.

All of these things are happening to Cebu, so we should prove ourselves equal to the opportunities presented to us,” she told reporters in a press conference yesterday.

Rush

As of now, the Capitol is rushing the work on the P250-million Cebu International Convention Center that would rise in Mandaue City.

Groundbreaking for the structure is scheduled for tomorrow, in time for Mandaue City’s celebration of its 485th foundation day celebration.

The convention center is targeted to be completed in time for the Asean Ministers’ Summit this December. (JPM)

[grabehbebe]

GMA okays P5.7 B to modernize RP postal system

President Arroyo has approved a proposal to modernize the country’s postal system through a P5.7-billion build-lease-transfer (BLT) project for the Philippine Postal Corp. (Philpost).

The President and the National Economic and Development Authority endorsed the postal modernization proposal, which would be undertaken at no cost or risk to Philpost, during the NEDA board meeting presided by Mrs. Arroyo as its chairman.

During the same meeting, the President and NEDA also approved three other major projects worth P13 billion.

These are the P8.6-billion Abaga-Kirahon-Maramag-Bulawan Transmission Project in Mindanao, the P1.2-billion Philippine Rural Electrification Project and the P982-million Angat-Maasin River Irrigation System.

The postal modernization project was proposed for Philpost as early as 2002 by the Japanese software developer Renaissance of Age (ROA) in order to improve the services of Philpost and increase its revenues which have been dropping for years.

ROA’s proposal improved as it underwent evaluation and became a build-operate-transfer (BOT) proposal when it was presented to the NEDA Investment Coordinating Committee Technical Board (ICC-TB) in June 2005, then a BLT project in November 2005.

The Philpost board of directors headed by its chairman, former press secretary Hector R. R. Villanueva, unanimously endorsed the project for consideration by NEDA-ICC and the Commission on Information Technology and Communications (CITC) which also supported it.

Under the proposal, ROA would computerize the Philippine postal system by leasing computers and other equipment to form the nucleus of the Philpost modernization.

ROA would then build and maintain modern postal applications and business systems worth P3.4 billion for more than 2,000 post offices throughout the country in seven years at no cost to Philpost. Training, maintenance, upgrading and replacements worth P2.3 billion would also be shouldered by ROA during the lifetime of the project.

With the computers and new business systems, Philpost revenues were projected to rise to P13 billion. At present, Philpost revenues range from P3.0 billion to P3.5 billion a year.

The ROA proposal was considered timely as Philpost services and revenues continue to decline due to outmoded systems and equipment, stiff competition from private groups and the introduction of modern technologies such as cell phones and the Internet that have reduced the people’s dependence on traditional stamps and letters.

Philpost officials and employees hailed the project proposal, stressing that the modern equipment and systems to be put up by the Japanese firm are expected to remarkably improve Philpost operations while increasing its revenues and the overall image of the government firm.

It will be Philpost managers and personnel who manage and operate the modern equipment and systems to be installed by ROA, thus assuring that there will be no dislocation among employees. The increased revenues of Philpost with the use of the ROA systems and the introduction of new businesses will, in fact, assure the availability of funds for the salaries and benefits of Philpost officials and employees.

Under the ROA proposal, post offices in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao will be computerized, improved and connected with one another through the Internet and the Voice-Over-Internet-Protocol (VOIP) which shall be introduced as new revenue-generating services of Philpost.

Computerization and Internet services would enable Philpost to finally set up and operationalize a "track and trace" system for all mail and packages it receives and dispatches, sorting would be computerized and the Philpost accounting system would be online, thereby discouraging and reducing fraud.


The Philippine Star 04/06/2006
http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200604060417.htm

[omad]

Saturday, April 08, 2006
Summit to spur Cebu’s growth
By Cherry T. Lim Of Sun.Star Cebu

Cebu's hosting of the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit will have far-reaching effects on its local industries, with the construction of the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) alone seen to spur development in the tourism and professional service industries, according to a foreign affairs official.

Citing the experience of Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian city that hosted the 11th Asean Summit in December 2005, Luis Cruz, director general, Asean-Philippines of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), said Cebu can expect to draw international conventions and exhibitions when the CICC is completed.

“The City Government of Kuala Lumpur also put up a convention center for the (11th Asean) summit. Even before it was completed, the Kuala Lumpur International Convention Center was already booked for two years in advance,” said Cruz.

full story

[omad]

Monday, April 10, 2006
Lower tariffs under Afta improve trade in Asean

Ninety-nine percent of all products traded among the six original members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) that meet a 40 percent Asean content requirement now have tariffs of zero to five percent, auguring well for the future of intra-Asean trade.

This was revealed by Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Asean-Philippines director general Luis Cruz, when asked about the effects of the Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) on trade flows within the region.

But he also said the level of trade was not the only indicator of the success of Afta.

Launched in 1992, the Afta laid out a comprehensive program of tariff reduction among members of the Asean to be carried out in phases through the year 2008. This deadline was subsequently moved up to 2003, and then to 2002.

The six original members of the Asean are Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Brunei. They are collectively called the Asean-6.

The newer members, collectively called the CLMV, have later deadlines for the reduction of their tariffs to zero to five percent: 2006 for Vietnam, 2008 for Lao PDR and Myanmar, and 2010 for Cambodia.

full story

[grabehbebe]

US, Japan renew vows to boost ties with RP
http://www.tribune.net.ph/nation/20060410nat3.html

The United States and Japanese governments yesterday renewed their commitments to further enhance their bilateral relations with the Philippines.

In a speech during the celebration of the 64th anniversary of the “Araw ng Kagitingan” (Day of Valor) in Mt. Samat, Pilar town, Bataan province, Japan Ambassador to the Philippines Ryuichiro Yamazaki reiterated his “heartfelt apologies over the atrocities committed by the Japanese military in the Philippines during World War II, including the tragic Bataan Death March.”

Yamazaki said he was “impressed by the noble spirit of reconciliation on the part of the Filipino people in appreciating Japan” as he lauded the nation for transforming into one “that shares the value of democracy, freedom and respect for basic human rights.”

As 2006 marks the 50th anniversary of normalization of diplomatic ties between the Philippines and Japan, he said the two governments have agreed to honor the occasion by celebrating it as the Philippines-Japan Friendship Year.

“In this regard, we have both declared a series of activities aimed at fostering with the people a greater sense of friendship as well as the appreciation of each other’s culture, arts, tradition, history, nature and technology,” Yamazaki said.

He said the 50th anniversary of the Philippines-Japan relations also offers excellent opportunities such as further enhancing bilateral relations between the two countries to the needs of the 21st century.

One such aspect, he said, is to conclude the Japan-Philippines economic partnership agreement “which will make our bilateral economic relation more comprehensive, more interactive, and more virtually beneficial.”

He added another aspect is the Philippine’s chairmanship of the East-Asia Summit, along with all other Association of Southeast Asian (Asean)-related summit meetings, the next of which is scheduled to be held in the province of Cebu in December. “It (meetings) will open another opportunity for closer cooperation between Asean nations towards building an east-Asian community,” he stressed.

Furthermore, Yamazaki said Japan is looking forward to the conclusion of a final peace agreement between the Philippine government and the local secessionist group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) this year.

“Japan believes that the peace settlement in Mindanao would include the security and economic situations in both the Philippines and Southeast Asia. Therefore, we will continue to render assistance for the rehabilitation and development of Mindanao in close collaboration with all stakeholders,” he said.

The Japanese ambassador said the fight against terrorism is another area where Asean nations, together with other allied countries such as the United States and Australia, can make a difference by promoting closer cooperation.

Yamazaki said as the start of golden jubilee of Philippines-Japan relations, with the Japanese economy now in the face of recovery and with the Philippine economy in the face of encouraging fiscal reforms under the leadership of President Arroyo, “it could not be more timely for Japan to be your largest partner in investments to reaffirm our unwavering commitment to continue helping in your nation-building efforts as a true friend of the Philippines.”

“I am confident that by working more closely together, our nations who are close neighbors sharing the basic values of democracy, freedom and respect for basic human rights will attain our common goals and ultimately bring about peace and prosperity for all,” he concluded.

For her part, US Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney cited the reason for celebrating the occasion, which was to “honor (the) valor...the heroism of the people of this land whose actions saved lives...and to be proud of the Filipino veterans (of the second World War)...who defended their nation.”

Kenney said even as the Philippines “is now living in a world of peace” it should continue to fight for it alongside its allied countries.

“Let us keep remembering the great sacrifice of the people who fought here. We must have the valor to work for better future, and we must have the strength to ensure that the future of our children be more peaceful and more prosperous,” she said.

“Araw ng Kagitingan” is observed on April 9 of every year to remember the heroism and bravery of Filipino and American troops in Bataan and Corregidor during World War II.
In her keynote speech at the event, President Arroyo highlighted the essence of the occasion.

“Today, we commemorate the heroism, the soldiers who sacrificed their lives, their youth and their dreams so that we, the next generation, can enjoy freedom and democracy.”

“Today, in the globalized regime and after 50 years of deep friendship with the people of Japan, we no longer differentiate the causes of the Filipino, American and Japanese soldiers during that war. Whatever side they were on, whatever country they came from, they passed the tests of their time with full honors. Their fight for freedom goes on because now, we are all brothers and sisters in democracy,” she said.

As the country commemorated what has been dubbed as the heroic “Death March” of Filipino guerillas who gallantly fought but were forced to surrender to the Japanese Army in World War II, Mrs. Arroyo said “we celebrate the valor of Filipinos to face adversities in the name of freedom and show our resilience in the face of difficulties that come our way.” PNA

[omad]

Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Film school to make Cebu known globally

The exposure factor is among the biggest benefits Cebu gets from the development and operation of a film school in Mactan.

“There’s no cosmopolitan city in this world that would not want to host a film company. But we choose and want to do it here (in Cebu) and it should mean a boost for Cebu,” Matthew Lubetich, chief operating officer of Bigfoot Entertainment said in a press interview.

Bigfoot Entertainment is the parent firm of Bigfoot Productions, Bigfoot Production Services, International Academy of Film and Television (IAFT), Bigfoot Partners and Bigfoot Sound-works.

He said they invite foreign film companies and industry players to come to Cebu.

“Those that we invite here go back to their countries and talk about their Cebu experience,” he said.

IAFT is a film school that offers courses such as animation, cinematography, directing, sound design and hands-on training with Hollywood professionals as mentors.

“We want Cebu to be like Phuket of Thailand, but it’s not only going to be a leisure destination. We bring multiple job opportunities here that include food services and transportation,” he said.

full story

[magma]

Pope to donate Holy Thursday collection to landslide victims

First posted 03:14pm (Mla time) April 11, 2006
By Veronica Uy
INQ7.net

Subscribe to Breaking News alerts, send ON EXTRA BREAKING to 2207 for Globe, or send EXTRA BREAKING to 386 for Smart.

A COLLECTION during the Holy Thursday Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI at the basilica of Saint John Lateran will be made for Leyte landslide victims, according to a statement posted on the website of the Catholic World News.
"The Vatican has announced that during the ritual of the washing of the feet, the faithful will be asked to contribute to the Pope's donation to the reconstruction effort in the Philippines," according to the CWN website, www.cwnews.com.

"The funds collected will be used to build new dwellings for those families who lost their homes in the catastrophic mudslides earlier this year,” the CWN statement said.

When asked about the special collection, Monsignor Pedro Quitorio, spokesman for the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, said that although his office had not communicated with Vatican, he was “inclined to believe” the article because Holy Thursday was traditionally the day when Catholic churches in other countries made special collections for disasters and relief operations.

“I've heard of the German Lenten Fund and the Swiss Lenten Fund. We have had a similar collection here too since 1977, and we call it the Alay Kapwa [Offering for Others] Catholic Lenten Fund, except [that] we moved it to Easter Sunday,” Quitorio said.

He said the CBCP news service was also issuing a statement based on the CWN website after INQ7.net sought CBCP's confirmation of the event.

On February 17, a massive mudslide virtually wiped out Guinsaugon village in Saint Bernard town, on Southern Leyte province, claiming almost 1,000 lives and destroying 500 structures, including an elementary school.

The same news item dated April 10 quoted Bishop Precioso Cantillas of the Maasin diocese in Southern Leyte as saying that he was moved to learn that the Pope was still thinking of his people and their suffering.

The CWN said it was traditional to organize a special collection each year, taken up at the Holy Thursday Mass, for a particular cause. Last year a collection was made for the flood victims in Venezuela.

In a related development, the Archdiocese of Singapore, represented by His Grace Archbishop Nicholas Chia DD, donated 205,289.12 Singapore dollars also for the Leyte landslide victims.

Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Belen Anota said the amount brought the total donations from the people and government of Singapore to about 11 million pesos. She said she would forward the check to the National Disaster Coordinating Council.

[clarkhkent]

RP among world’s best dive sites
By Mayen Jaymalin
The Philippine Star 04/18/2006

Thailand, Hawaii and other South Pacific and Caribbean countries are known for their prime scuba sites — but they have nothing on the Philippines, which has officially earned the distinction of being among the world’s top three diving destinations.

Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA) general manager Robert Barbers said the country was chosen as one of the top three dive sites in the world during the Dive and Travel Awards for 2006 held in Japan.

The best dive site award was a result of a survey conducted by the Marine Diving Fair (MDF), now considered to be Asia’s largest scuba diving and beach resort exhibition that annually attracts over 50,000 travelers.

"The Philippines was very fortunate to be given recognition and the honor to be named among the best dive sites in the world next to Maldives and Palau," Barbers said.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200604180406.htm

[grabehbebe]

MNLF-MILF reunification talks please Palace

Malacañang on Monday expressed gladness over the news that last Saturday the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Moro National Liberal Front (MNLF) held reunification talks.

The MNLF delegation to the meeting with the MILF on Saturday was made up of 40 persons led by Ustadz Sharif Zain Jali, chairman of the MNLF Bangsamoro People’s Congress, and Abdurahman Jamasali, a nephew of Misuari, during a meeting with MILF leaders in Camp Darapanan, an MILF base situated in the jungles of Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao.

The MILF was founded 26 years ago after the late Salamat Hashim and like-minded Moros broke away from Nur Misuari’s MNLF in 1980.

Palace spokesman Ignacio Bunye said on Monday that the government needs “all hands on deck for peace and development in Mindanao as well as in the fight against terrorism.”
“Both the MILF and the MNLF will continue to play a key role in bringing the Bangsamoro people to the threshold of peace, security and prosperity under one Filipino nation,” Bunye said in a statement.

Hashim defected from Misuari’s group following a disagreement in the way Misuari as chairman of the MNLF handled the peace agreement with the Marcos government.

Hashim also masterminded the abandonment of Misuari by many MNLF leaders to abandon Misuari. These men joined Hashim to form the MILF, which was calling for a separate Islamic state.

MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said the reunification group representing the MNLF met behind closed-doors with MILF political affairs chief Ghadzali Jaafar, MILF chief negotiator Mohaqher Iqbal and some leaders of the MILF central committee.

Kabalu added, that among the subjects of discussion were the health condition of Misuari and the call for his immediate release from detention.

Misuari remains in detention following the 2002 Zamboanga and Jolo insurgency launched by his supporters and where dozens of people were killed.

Some Christians in Mindanao fear that the government will agree to surrender their territories—both government and private lands that were never Muslim-controlled but were developed by Cebuano migrants and natives who never embraced Islam—to the MNLF and the MILF.

--Sam Mediavilla, Manila Times desk with a PNA report
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/...60418top2.html

[grabehbebe]

Gov’t cuts budget deficit to P67.6B in Q1

The country’s budget deficit reached P67.6 billion in the first three months of the year, better than the government’s P71.8-billion target despite overshooting its spending program for the three-month period.

Data from the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) showed that after completing its bond-swap in the first quarter, the government spent more than it intended on interest payments but the overall fiscal condition managed to stay within the three-month program.

Total spending in March reached P95.3 billion, overshooting the P87.6-billion target by P7.7 billion. Spending during the first quarter also surged ahead of the P263.5-billion target and reached P272.6 billion.

For March alone, the deficit widened by 16.2 percent to P27.2 billion from P23.4 billion in the same period last year because of debt payments and government spending on infrastructure projects.

National Treasurer Omar Cruz said the surge in spending was due largely to the one-time adjustment in interest expense following the bond-swap that was completed earlier in the year.

"We have front-loaded interest payments and also did pump priming," Cruz said. "We spend on capital during the dry season because we don’t like to do construction during the rainy season," which begins about June.

Net of interest payments, Cruz said total expenditures stayed within the target set by the Development Budget Coordinating Committee (DBCC).

Cruz did not give the operations spending target for March or for the first quarter, however, saying only that "operations stayed within program" during the period.

Cruz said the total budget deficit in January to March was P4.2 billion less than the target mainly because the government collected P13.4 billion more revenues than it was expecting during the period.

"The over-performance was driven by strong revenue collections," Cruz said. "In the past, we have been able to do this only because we were making deep expenditure cuts."

According to Cruz, keeping the deficit below the ceiling while also increasing capital expenditures during the first quarter meant that the real economy would benefit from some degree of pump-priming by the government.

Cruz stressed that expenditures went over the first quarter target only because of the increase in interest payments that resulted from the bond-swap which he said front-loaded the interest expenses.

"But that’s a one-time adjustment, it’s a booking issue" he said. "For the whole year, the overall effect of the bond-swap is savings in terms of interest payments"

Total revenues reached P68.1 billion in March alone, Cruz said and amounted to a total of P205 billion during the quarter. In contrast, the target was only P63.8 billion for March and P191.7 billion for the first quarter.

In 2005, Cruz reported that total revenues reached P58.6 billion in March and P171.7 billion in the first quarter, equivalent to a growth of 16.2 percent and 19.4 percent, respectively.

These numbers, according to Cruz, already includes non-cash revenues representing documentary stamp taxes that government agencies pay the government for financial transactions.

At these levels, Cruz said the first quarter deficit was equivalent to 58 percent of the P125-billion total budget deficit programmed for the entire year.

"By the end of the first semester, the total deficit would have already gone up to about 72 percent of the total target for the year," Cruz said. "But this is a deliberate strategy. We want to complete our capital expenditures during the dry season or they wouldn’t be done at all when the rainy season sets in."

Although front-loading its capital spending during the first half has caused serious problems for the government in the past, Cruz expressed confidence that the strength of revenue inflows would not create the same crisis that it did in 2003.

"This is a revenue-driven performance," Cruz said. "We are staying under the ceiling because we have revenue inflows and not because we are making severe cuts in public spending."



--By Des Ferriols
The Philippine Star 04/21/2006
http://www.philstar.com/philstar/news200604210701.htm