TACLOBAN CITY- In line with 23rd National Maritime Week Celebration, the National Maritime Polytechnic (NMP) conducted series of lectures-symposia held at its training center in Barangay Cabalawan, this city on September 25.
The lectures-symposia was attended by 98 participants composed of NMP seafarer-trainees.
Invited resource speakers were Heidi Hosillos, Overseas Workers Welfare Officer II and Angelo Remandaban, Family Welfare Officer both from the Overseas Worker Welfare Administration (OWWA) Regional Office No. 8 who conducted on financial literacy for seafarers.
The lecture was aimed to provide guidance to seafarer-trainees in ensuring that their finances are handled and managed well.
It also intended to create awareness and appreciation to the participants on the importance of financial planning and the various savings and investment plans suggestions and ideas.
“Cut-down expenses relating to the things you want and retain expenses relating to the things you need” said Hosillos.
She also encouraged the seafarers to avail of the OWWA’s Seafarers’ Upgrading Program (SUP) which is in a form of financial assistance.
OWWA will assume the costs of training and the beneficiaries will get to choose their preferred training course that are accredited by Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA).
Likewise, in order to raise awareness among seafarers of the risks of maritime cyber-attacks and how to avoid them, NMP also included lecture on cyber security for seafarers.
Discussant was NMP’s information technology officer I Andrew Soledad.
Soledad stressed that implementing effective security measures should be considered as a priority issue considering that vessels, ports, and facilities across the global maritime community are increasingly dependent on cyber systems and in order to ensure that the systems, networks, and programs are protected from cyber-attacks, which may pose significant security, safety and financial risks to shipping and offshore operations.
Likewise, as the NMP’s Data Privacy Officer, Soledad also provided discussed salient features of the Data Privacy Act or Republic Act 10173.
Said act seeks to protect the fundamental human right of privacy, of communication while ensuring free flow of information to promote innovation and growth.
“In this digital age, the Act is necessary and important precaution to protect all forms of information, be it private, personal, or sensitive,” Soledad disclosed.
The lectures-symposia were conducted being one of the performance commitments contained in the NMP 2018 Office Performance Commitment Review (OPCR). (PR)
NMP holds series of lectures-symposia during celebration of Maritime Week
DPWH to strictly enforce the 20-meters width road requirement as part of its road widening projects
CARIGARA, Leyte- The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-Leyte Second District Engineering Office advises the public to keep the 20-meter minimum width requirement on national roads.
Maintenance section chief Francisco Robin, Jr. said that there must be a proper information dissemination to the public to block the construction of residential, business, or other establishments within the 20-meter parameters to give way for the road right-of-way program.
“Let us inform our neighbours to preserve the 20-meters no building zone for the road widening and major flood control projects. Let us altogether help in the dissemination so when the time comes, investments would not go to waste,” Robin said.
He added that obstructions within the established right-of-way of existing national roads that will be displaced by the projects will not be compensated by the government.
The Right-of-Way Act contained under Republic Act 10752 states that “the government may acquire real property needed as right-of-way site or location for any national government for any national government infrastructure project through donation, negotiated sale, expropriation, or any mode of acquisition as provided by law.”
However, this act only applies to new construction or road opening projects wherein the road right-of-way has not been previously acquired.
The road widening project of DPWH aims to utilize the burgeoning number of vehicular population in the country which results to traffic congestion.
This also intends to cultivate safety among motorists who go to and from places within the region. (LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
LSA athletes won 7 gold medals in Batang Pinoy 2018
TACLOBAN CITY – It was another bountiful harvest of medals for the Leyte Sports Academy (LSA) scholars in the recently concluded Batang Pinoy 2018 National Championship held in Baguio City.
This was announced by Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla who said that the athlete-scholars of LSA won seven gold, three silver and a bronze medals during the sports competition for athletes 13 to 15 years of age.
The LSA delegation was composed of 13 young athletes.
Petilla said that for wrestling, which was participated by six athletes, the LSA athletes won four gold medals and one silver medal.
On the other hand, for the athletics, which was participated by four athletes, it generated three gold medals, 2 silver and a bronze medal while in boxing participated in by 3 athletes, produced a bronze medal.
(RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)
BIR, NBI raid cigarette warehouse bearing with fake tax stamps
PALO, Leyte – The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR-8), based here, in coordination with the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), raided a cigarette warehouse located in Tacloban City on Thursday (Oct.4).
Atty. Ma. Grace Javier, BIR-8 regional director, said that the cigarettes found in a warehouse located in Barangay 79, Nula-Tula, bore with fake BIR stamps.
Director Javier said that the raid started at about 6 pm and ended six hours later.
The BIR director, who led the raiding team, said that the raid yielded 1,215 master cases of various brands of cigarettes with fake stamps.
She added that each master case of cigarette contains 50 reams and each ream has ten packs.
Javier was not able to determine the value of the raided products in the warehouse but said that the excise tax is P35 per pack of cigarette and the overall tax due to the government is P17.5 million.
“If these are legitimate the excise tax due to the government is P17.5 million,” Javier said.
Javier explained that all the 1,215 master cases of cigarettes were all confiscated because those products bore fake BIR stamps.
Javier also said that the team also simultaneously raided seven stores in Tacloban who were selling cigarettes with fake stamps.
She added that her office is monitoring establishments or stores who are selling cigarettes bearing fake BIR stamps in the region.
She claims that cigarettes bearing fake BIR stamps are now proliferating in Tacloban City and other areas in Eastern Visayas.
(RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)
NPA warns gov’t of intensified ‘tactical offenses’ as response to neutralization call of Pres. Duterte
TACLOBAN CITY- Expect more ‘tactical offenses’ to be carried out by the members of the New People’s Army (NPA).
Thus warned an official of the armed group of the Communist Party of the Philippines, reacting to the statement of President Rodrigo Duterte before soldiers of the 803rd Infantry Brigade directing them to ‘neutralize’ men and even women suspected to be NPA members.
“In response to Duterte’s threats, the NPA will strive to intensify tactical offensives to defend the people and to punish the police, military and paramilitary units that are the worst human rights violators and promoters of mining, logging, land grabbing and other plunder,” Ka Karlos, spokesperson of the Efren Martires Command of the NPA operating in Eastern Visayas said in an emailed statement Wednesday.
“The NPA will surely become bigger and stronger because Rodrigo Duterte himself is fast becoming the best NPA recruiter as his human rights violations and dictatorial powers are convincing more people to take up armed struggle and overthrow the reactionary ruling system.”
During his visit to 803rd IB based at Camp Juan Ponce Sumoroy in Catarman, Northern Samar on Tuesday afternoon, Mr. Duterte did not minced word when he directed government soldiers, to include policemen, to neutralize NPA members as a way to end Asia’s longest insurgency problem.
In his speech before the soldiers, Mr.Duterte also slammed the communist group saying they have done nothing to the country but killed Filipinos.
He, however, called on them to surrender and return to the folds of the law and in the process, receive assistance from the government.
Mr. Duterte provided financial assistance to 15 former rebels, an activity that was not opened to media.
Ka Karlos said that the statement of the President is another version of the controversial ‘tokhang’ used by the Philippine National Police on the government’s anti-illegal drug campaign.
“This is worse than the bloody anti-drug war “Tokhang” which was against a part of the poor who were desperate and dabbled in drugs. Now Duterte wants to arrest or kill all who opposes his regime, who could even be conveniently shot dead and described in police parlance as ‘NPA na nanlaban,’ he said.
“This will be carrying out mass murder because the police and military are steeped in fanatical anticommunism and do not see any difference, such as between a student activist and an NPA Red fighter,” he added.
The spokesperson of the armed group operating in the region called on the Army and police not to follow this order of their Commander-in-Chief and respect human rights.
(JOEY A. GABIETA)
Pres. Duterte to soldiers: Neutralize the communist terrorists
CATARMAN, Northern Samar-President Duterte has ordered the soldiers to “neutralize” the communist rebels to help end insurgency problem of the country.
In a speech before soldiers belonging to 803rd Infantry Brigade in Camp Juan Ponce Sumoroy on Tuesday(Oct.2), the President said soldiers should kill themselves instead of surrendering during a gun battle with the sparrow unit New People’s Army’s (NPA) liquidation group.
The President said the soldiers should never allow themselves to die in the hands of the sparrow unit members.
“As I promised before, I have your back,” he said.
“Just continue performing your duty well and you can be assured that this administration will take care of you and your children” he added.
Mr. Duterte renewed his call for the NPA rebels to leave the armed struggle and surrender.
“I reiterate this administration’s call for communist terrorists to abandon their extremist activities and return to the fold of the law,” he said.
At the same time, he asked the soldiers to beef up their intelligence gathering and neutralized the communist group.
“We are not into crime prevention. It’s neutralization, neutralization tayo…” he said.
He pointed out that there was no such thing as crime prevention in the fight against communist rebels because the latter were committing crime of rebellion daily.
“There is no crime prevention because the crime is bring committed, perpetrated 24 hours a day. So hindi na kailangan magtanong ng warrant na yan. They are committing the crime of rebellion 24 hours a day, Naghahanap lang yun ng engkwentro,” he said.
“I will be criticized.Im telling you, I am guiding you what is practical and what is true and legal,” he added.
President Duterte went on to his usual rant against the Communist Party of the Philippines which had done nothing but kill police, soldiers and civilians for more than 50 years.
He described CPP founder Jose Sison as “hambugero (egotist)” whose group could not even overran a village.
During his visit, Duterte who was wearing a military camouflage, also provided financial assistance to 15 former NPA members from the province who returned to the folds of the law.
He arrived in Catarman at 3:36 p.m. and was accompanied Special Assistant to the President Bong Go and his military adviser, Undersecretary Arthur Tabaquero, who once head of the 8th Infantry Division where the 803rd IB belongs. (JOEY A. GABIETA)