Communities RP Government Updates Philippine Embassy News Release
| Philippine Embassy News Release |
PHILIPPINE EMBASSY
NEWS RELEASE
09/APR/08
1. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s
Speech during the Observance of the 66th Anniversary of ‘Araw ng
Kagitingan’ 2. PGMA formally opens 2 units of Petron’s
facility 3. People need rice on the table not
political posturing – PGMA 4. PGMA signs proposed Filipino WWII
Veterans Pension and Benefits Act of 2008 into a law 5. PGMA to launch Abra development program
tomorrow 6. PGMA to look into peace, order situation
in C.A.R 7. U.S. ready to make rice available as
much as RP needs, says Amb. Kristie Kenney 8. Press Sec Bunye appoints Cornelio De
Guzman as OIC editor-in-chief of the Presidential News Desk 9. A respectful comment on a guru’s
comment
----- 1. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s Speech
during the Observance of the 66th Anniversary of ‘Araw Ng Kagitingan’ Dambana ng Kagitingan, Mt. Samat Shrine Pilar, Bataan April 9, 2008 Thank you very much, Secretary Teodoro. Thank you. Her Excellency Kristie Kenney, His Excellency
Makoto Katsura, other members of the diplomatic community, Senator Richard
Gordon, members of the House of Representatives. And I would like to acknowledge
them individually: we have Deputy Speaker Girlie Villarosa; (applause) we have
Majority Leader Art Defensor; (applause) we have the Representatives of Bataan,
Herminia Roman (applause) and Abet Garcia. (applause) I’d like to greet also
Abet’s father, Governor Garcia. (applause) And I’d like to greet the Vice
Chairman of the Committee on Veterans Affairs of the House, Joey Solis
(applause) and Buhay Congresswoman Iyay Coscolluela (applause) who together with
Congressman Solis, both of them, were the principal authors of the Veterans Law
of 2008 as Dick Gordon was the principal author in the Senate. Thanks to all of
them. (applause) I’ve greeted Governor Garcia, I’d like to greet all
the people of Bataan; General Esperon and the other officials of the Armed
Forces of the Philippines. I’ve greeted Secretary Teodoro, I’d like to greet all
other government officials at higit sa lahat ating mga beterano at kanilang mga
pamilya. (applause) Sa araw na ito, gaya nang ginawa ng ating nagsalita
na kanina, nagpupugay at sinasariwa natin ang kabayanihan at kadakilaan ng ating
mga bayaning kawal pati na rin yung mga kawal ng ating mga kakampi na buong
tapang na lumaban at nag-alay ng buhay noong World War II. Ginugunita na rin
natin ang kabayanihan ng iba pang sundalong Pilipino sa ibang digmaan at pati
ang mga nakikibaka sa mga terorista at rebelde hanggang Ngayon sa iba't-ibang
dako ng bansa. Kadakilaan ng ating mga sundalo, kabilang kayo, mga
iginagalang nating mga beterano, ang siyang pinagkakautangan ng ating pagtamasa
ng kalayaan. Kaya, minamahal naming bayani, maraming Salamat sa inyo.
(applause) Sa ating kasaysayan, buong tapang na nakipagtagisan
ang mga Pilipino para sa ating paglaya at para sa kalayaan at kapayapaan ng
mundo. Hindi sapat na magpasalamat ang sambayanan sa inyo, ating mga beterano.
Dapat ding siguruhing natutugunan ang inyong mga pangangailangan. Sabi nga nila hindi lang dapat salapi pero yun ang
napakaimportante lalo na sa mga edad ng ating mga beterano ngayon. Kaya kahit
noong panahong gahol tayo sa pondo, nasimulan nating bayaran nung 2005 ang utang
sa mga beterano. At noong 2007, nabayaran ang halos dalawang bilyong utang sa
pensiyon sa matatanda para sa higit 12,000 na beterano at milyun-milyong
benepisyo sa mahigit tatlong libong beterano. Napondohan din ang utang sa
eskwela ng mahigit limang libong estudyante na mga anak ng mga beterano. Since last year, thanks to our Congressmen, we have
doubled the budget for the payment of arrearages, the debt to you our veterans,
to three and a half billion pesos so that hopefully all outstanding old age
pensions can be settled by the end of this year 2008. (applause) The government, the PVAO has also reduced claims
processing time and it’s delivering faster the pensions through bank payments.
Today, I understand from Secretary Teodoro that nearly all pensioners now get
pensions through ATM. We also continue working for the Filipino Veterans
Equity Bill in the United States. A joint Philippine Executive-Legislative
delegation including Senator Gordon and Congressman Solis will leave this month
to lobby for its passage. (applause) But of course, we will begin our lobbying
with Ambassador Kristie Kenney right here in Mt. Samat. (applause) And in the meantime, today at the end of my
remarks, I will sign before you the "Filipino World War II Veterans Pensions and
Benefits Act of 2008." (applause) The courage and patriotism of all war heroes live
on. You are bequeathed to today's Filipino soldiers who battle lawless violence
to protect citizens and brave deadly calamity to rescue disaster victims. Courage and patriotism also shine through our
efforts to forge lasting peace, shown by peace advocates who persevere in
building trust and restraining violence despite years, if not decades of strife. Ambassador Katsura talked about the peace process.
We thank Japan. We thank the U.S. We thank all our allies represented by the
ambassadors here for this help in the peace process. Courage and patriotism are manifest also in the
determined toil of farmers who are doubling their efforts to produce more food
for our people. Our near-term objective is to focus on putting food
on the table for our people. The global rise in the price of basic commodities
like fuel and rice is putting a strain on all hardworking Filipinos and
veterans, and others who live on fixed pensions and especially our very poor. We aim to prevent these strains on individuals and
your families by preventing these strains from becoming a crisis by taking
decisive action. Concerning rice, it is essential that the people of
the nation understand exactly what the situation is and what we are doing about
it. It would be unfortunate if panic overtook logic, because we will endure and
survive the moment and come through it stronger, the way we endured Bataan,
survived the war and came out stronger. In the meantime, however, just like Bataan, it will
take unity and hard work. Overall, our strengthened economic situation gives
us the ability and flexibility to respond forcefully to make sure we maintain
control of the situation. Specific to the rice issue, we have an Action Plan,
comprising three phases, to make sure our rice situation remains stable: First,
is to secure supply; second, to ensure proper distribution; third, is to
guarantee enforcement to protect of our people against price gouging and
corruption. The Philippines is not alone in seeking to manage
this challenge, just as the Philippines was not alone in the Second World War.
There is a convergence of global forces that are buffeting the Philippines and
every other nation at this time. This includes an economic slowdown in our
allied countries; it includes a surge in the price of oil, a surge in the price
of important food commodities such as rice. In anticipation of time such as this, we have been
working every day since I came to office to rebuild the Philippine economy to
weather this kind of storm. We have increased our foreign reserves, raised
revenues, stimulated investments, diversified our export base. Regionally and
globally, we have developed strong partnerships with our allies, some of whom
used to be our fiercest enemies in the war and now are among our most ardent
allies in our war against poverty. Most importantly, we have been able to turn
our strong economic gains into investments for our people in terms of jobs,
education, health care and roads, bridges and ports. With this newfound stability, we are in a much
better position to weather these economic and price pressures than ever before.
That does not mean it lessens the pain on our poor when rice and gas prices
increase, but we are able to help ease this burden. I thank Governor Garcia for saying that the
provincial government will provide rice subsidies to the veterans of Bataan and
their families. That is a great example. (applause) It is essential for our
political leaders to join hands and close ranks to meet this challenge. This is
no time for political posturing. We need food on the table, not headlines in the
newspapers. We must invest, not just investigate. It is time
for action, not political wrangling. The people deserve that we focus on a
positive agenda, not get wrapped up in political jockeying. No endless investigation will put rice on the
table, a computer in a classroom or a health clinic in a barangay. We must put
the interests of the individual Filipino above all else and make sure to
reassure our people that we are providing steady and strong leadership at this
critical point in time. To repeat: We must put rice on the table and not
politics on the front page. As we manage our way through the fuel and food
spikes, we must not lose sight of advancing the long-term interests of our
nation. We remain focused on the essential building blocks: economy, education,
environment. While we invest in our people, we will also not
lose sight of the economic gains we have made through fiscal discipline. We will
not only meet the near-term investment needs to prevent any type of food crisis,
but we will further reach for a balanced budget. This means to put greater pressure on revenue
collection through enhanced use of technology and some of the administrative
measures that were proposed by Governor Garcia as well as the political will to
get the job done. The revenue is there to bring us to the threshold of
first-world in 20 years; we just need to ensure that we collect it. Para sagutin lahat itong hamon huhugutin ang lakas
ang sambayanan mula sa huwaran ng katapangan at kadakilaan na ipinamalas ng
ating mga beterano. (applause) Mga minamahal nating beterano, matapang kayong
nakipaghamok noon, nararapat lang na matapang din ang kasalukuyang henerasyon ng
inyong mga anak at apo sa pagharap sa mga banta sa kaunlaran. Kayong beteranong Pilipino ay tunay na gabay ng
sambayanan tungo sa pagkakaisa, kapayapaan at kaunlaran. Nagpapasalamat Kami sa
inyong kadakilaan. Mga Kababayan, suklian natin ang kabayanihan ng ating mga
beterano sa pamamagitan ng nagkakaisang pagkilos upang malampasan ang mga
balakid sa pambansang layunin na pangmatagalang kapayapaan at
kaunlaran. At ngayon alang-alang sa ating mga minamahal na
beterano, iniimbita ko ang ating senador, ang ating mga congressmen, ang ilang
kinatawan ng ating mga beterano ng World War II na sana ay pumunta rito sa aking
paligid para maging testigo sa ating pagpirma ng bagong batas para sa inyong
kapakanan. (applause) Maraming salamat sa inyong lahat.
(applause) ----- 2. PGMA formally opens 2 units of Petron’s
facility LIMAY, Bataan – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
formally opened here today Petron's Petro Fluidized Catalytic Cracking
(PetroFCC) and Propylene Recovery (PRU) units, two key components of Phase 1 of
the oil firm’s $300-million Refinery Master Plan. The President also witnessed the contract signing
between Petron Corporation and Mitsui Company Ltd. of Japan under which Petron
will supply Mitsui, Japan’s largest trading house, with polymer-grade propylene,
an important component in the manufacture of plastics. The contract, which was signed by Petron's
president Kamal Al-Yahya and Mitsui's General Manager Masayasu Nagai, allows
Mitsui to purchase the highly sought-after polymer product for six
months. Only last week, Mitsui lifted 1,500 metric tons of
propylene from Petron’s refinery here. The first "cracking" unit of its kind in the world,
the PetroFCC processes black products called fuel oil and transforms them into
higher value "white" products such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), gasoline
and diesel. More importantly, the PetroFCC process yields a
petrochemical feedstock propylene that is of a higher level than typical FCC
units. On the other hand, the PRU further purifies the
propylene by-product from the PetroFCC process for use in various petrochemical
products such as food packaging, appliances, suitcases and furniture. PetroFCC has a conversion capacity of 19,000
barrels a day, while the PRU can produce 140,000 metric tons of propylene
annually. After undergoing the PRU process, propylene can be
further utilized in the manufacture of automobile components, carpets, CDs,
clear film food wrap, eyeglasses, polyurethane foams, impact-resistant and
bullet-proof windows, moulded plastic goods such as buckets, nitrile rubber
hoses, paints and protective coatings, grocery bags, synthetic fibres,
watercooler bottles, and wood products such as plywood. In his welcome remarks, Petron chairman and CEO
Nicasio Alcantara said "these new refinery units will boost the local
petrochemical industry and benefit other vital downstream manufacturing sector
and will wean us away from our dependence on external sources for our supply of
propylene." Joining the President in the inauguration
ceremonies were Alcantara, Al-Yahya, Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes, and Bataan
governor Enrique Garcia. ----- 3. People need rice on the table not political
posturing – PGMA "We must put rice on the table and not politics on
the front page." Thus said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo during
the celebration of 66th anniversary of Araw ng Kagitingan this morning in Pilar,
Bataan. In her speech, the President reiterated her call
for national unity, saying the present situation calls for decisive action, not
political grandstanding. "It is essential for our political leaders to join
hands and close ranks to meet this challenge. This is no time for political
posturing. We need food on the table, not headlines in the newspapers," the
President said. Instead of indulging in too much politics, the
President said everyone should focus on improving the lot of the ordinary
Filipino amid the current challenges posed by the slowdown in the United States
economy, and the high prices of fuel and rice in the world market. "We must invest, not just investigate. It is time
for action, not political wrangling. The people deserve that we focus on a
positive agenda, not get wrapped up in political jockeying," she
said. The President stressed that the endless
investigations in the Senate will never put rice on the table, a computer in a
classroom or a health clinic in a barangay. "We must put the interests of the individual
Filipino above all else and make sure to reassure our people that we are
providing steady and strong leadership at this critical point in time," she
said. Instead of politicking, the President said it is
better to come up with concrete solutions and not empty promises as she lauded
Bataan Gov. Enrique Garcia helping World War II veterans in his province by
providing them with rice subsidies. "I thank Governor Garcia for saying that the
provincial government will provide rice subsidies to the veterans of Bataan and
their families. That is a great example," she said. ----- 4. PGMA signs proposed Filipino WWII Veterans
Pension and Benefits Act of 2008 into a law PILAR, BATAAN—President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
signed today into a law the Filipino World War II Veterans Pension and Benefits
Act of 2008, which stipulates that Filipino WWII veterans will continue to
receive the pension they are getting now even in the event the Filipino Veterans
Equity Bill is passed by the US Congress. The Filipino Veterans Equity Bill calls on the
United States government to extend benefits to Filipino veterans for their
wartime services. The signing took place at the end of the
President’s speech during the 66th Araw ng Kagitingan celebration this morning
at the Mt. Samat Shrine in Pilar, Bataan. Filipino war veterans, US Ambassador Kristie
Kenney, Japanese Ambassador Makoto Katsura, Sen. Richard Gordon, who sponsored
the measure in the Senate; and Cong. Jose Solis, one of the sponsors in the
House of Representatives, witnessed the signing of the bill into law. The new law, which amends Sections 10 and 11 of RA
No. 6948, allows Filipino WW II veterans to continue receiving their P5,000
monthly old-age pension from the Philippine government even if the US government
would grant them additional benefits in the event the Filipino Veterans Equity
Bill is approved buy the US Senate. The President said that she is sending this month a
Philippine delegation to the US to lobby for the passage of the legislative
measure filed, which has been pending in the US Congress since 1955. "A joint Philippine executive-legislative
delegation including Senator Gordon and Congressman Solis will leave this month
to lobby for its passage. And we will begin our lobbying with Ambassador Kristie
Kenney right here in Mt. Samat," the President said. Defense Undersecretary Ernesto Carolina said the US
Senate version of the Filipino Veterans Equity Bill seeks to provide Filipino
veterans with a monthly pension of between $300 and $350, while the US House of
Representatives version of the measure calls for a higher monthly pension of
$500-$550. The President said that because of the economic
reforms implemented by her administration, the government was able to start
paying the arrearages on the unpaid pension of Filipino WWII veterans in
2005. Last year, some P2 billion was provided for the
payment of the old-age pension of more than 12,000 veterans, aside from
providing millions in benefits to more than 3,000 other veterans, she
added. The government also funded the tuition deficit of
more than 5,000 children of war veterans, she said. The President thanked the members of Congress for
doubling the budget allotted for the payment of arrearages to P3.5
billion. "So hopefully, all outstanding old-age pension can
be settled at the end of this year 2008," she said. ----- 5. PGMA to launch Abra development program
tomorrow PILAR, Abra – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
will launch here tomorrow (April 10, Thursday) the Abra Sustainable Agriculture
Development (ASAD), a government program designed to increase agricultural
production in this mountainous province. The President will also personally lead several
agencies in the delivery of basic social services to residents of this remote
5th-class municipality. The Chief Executive will also lead the
groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a two-storey, four-classroom
school building of the Pilar Central School; distribute grocery packs to some
5,000 indigent residents, and award 25 scholarship vouchers of the Technical
Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA). She will award "Galing Mekaniko ako" and "Galing
Masahista Ako" tool kits and certificates of award to various small-scale
irrigation and market-access facilities and equipment, and production support
and post harvest facilities to Abra Gov. Eustaquio Bersamin. The farmers here will receive 28 kilograms of
assorted vegetable seeds under the "Programang Gulayan ng Masa" in support of
the hunger-mitigation program of the government. The President will also award checks worth P10
million to the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and the Department of
Agriculture (DA) for the construction of farm-to-market roads. Certificates to operate Tindahan Natin outlets to
10 qualified residents will also be awarded while certificates to operate Botika
ng Bayan (BnB) and Botika ng Barangay will be presented to Pilar Mayor Rolando
Somera. To further boost the farmers’ livelihood
activities, the President will lead the ceremonial switch-on of an irrigation
network project for Pilar and its neighboring municipalities. ----- 6. PGMA to look into peace, order situation in
C.A.R BANGUED, Abra – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
will fly here tomorrow morning to assess the peace and order situation in the
entire Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR). The president is set to address the culmination of
the Peace and Security Assembly being held in this capital town of Abra with
leaders of local government units and civil societies in attendance. With the theme: "Peace and Security: Our Shared
Responsibility," the local peace assembly is a continuing program of the
national government to address the insurgency and terrorism problem and other
things that affect peace and security in both local and national
levels. At the opening of the assembly this morning,
national government officials discussed with leaders of various sectors of
society different approaches in addressing the problems of peace and order in
their municipalities. The participants will also identify and discuss the
difficulties they encounter in addressing local peace and security
problems. Participants are expected to present to the
President their action agenda for a broad and multi-sectoral campaign to resolve
the peace and security problem within the region. Prior to the LPSA here in Bangued, the National
Security Council (NSC) already conducted a series of assemblies in Region VII,
particularly in Bohol, CARAGA region in Butuan City, Region VIII in Tacloban
City, CALABARZON (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) that was held in San
Pablo City, Region V in Masbate City, and Region XI in Tagum City. Hundreds of participants headed by National
Security Adviser Secretary Norberto Gonzales Jr., Presidential Adviser on the
Peace Process Secretary Jesus Dureza, local government executives including
governors and city mayors, top commanders of the Armed Forces of the Philippines
(AFP) and officials of the Philippine National Police (PNP), leaders of civil
society, business groups, religious sectors, and the academe attended the
assembly. ----- 7. U.S. ready to make rice available as much as RP
needs, says Amb. Kristie Kenney PILAR, Bataan—US Ambassador to the Philippines
Kristie Kenney said here today that the United States would send more rice to
the country to help Filipinos cope with the problem of rising food prices and
avert any shortage of the Filipino staple food. Ambassador Kenney affirmed the United States’
resolve to help the Philippines when she was interviewed by the media during the
66th anniversary celebration of the Araw ng Kagitingan this morning at the Mt.
Samat Shrine in Pilar, Bataan. "We are ready to make rice available as much as the
Philippines needs," Kenney said. Earlier, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
announced the importation of 50,000 metric tons of rice from the United States
in addition to the 700,000 metric tons of the staple that would arrive within
the next three months to beef up the country’s inventory. The Philippines has been traditionally sourcing the
bulk of its rice imports from Vietnam to beef up the National Food Authority
(NFA) inventory as global rice production is seen to fall this year below the
global consumption level of 430 million tons. To ensure stable supply and prices of rice, the
President has ordered government agencies to increase the inventory of the
cereal, crack down on hoarders to protect consumers, invest more in planting and
agricultural modernization; and provide rice subsidies for the poor. In a speech she delivered here, the President said
her administration’s near-term objective is to focus on decisive actions to put
food on every table as the global rise in the prices of basic commodities like
fuel and rice is putting a strain on all hardworking Filipinos, especially the
very poor. "Specific to the rice issue, we have an Action
Plan, comprising three phases, to make sure our rice situation remains stable:
First, is to secure supply; second, to ensure proper distribution; third, is to
guarantee enforcement to protect of our people against price gouging and
corruption," she said. The President said that because of the economic
reforms she initiated, the Philippines has become more resilient to face the
challenges posed by the economic slowdown in allied countries, and the surge in
the prices of oil and important food commodities such as rice. "With this newfound stability, we are in a much
better position to weather these economic and price pressures than ever before.
That does not mean it lessens the pain on our poor when rice and gas prices
increase, but we are able to help ease this burden," she said. ----- 8. Press Sec Bunye appoints Cornelio De Guzman as
OIC editor-in-chief of the Presidential News Desk Press Secretary Ignacio R. Bunye has appointed
veteran newsman Cornelio "Kune" de Guzman as OIC editor-in-chief of the
Presidential News Desk (PND) of the Office of the Press Secretary (OPS). De Guzman, a long-time provincial and tourism
editor of the Manila Bulletin, had served as the PND’s managing editor before
his appointment to the top post of the PND which was vacated by another veteran
editor, Severino Samonte, who retired last March 31. Secretary Bunye also elevated former PND desk
editor and presidential close-in writer Aurora "Au" Alambra as the News Editor
of the PND-OPS. The PND-OPS produces the stories and photos that
appear on the news websites of the Office of the President
(http://www.op.gov.ph) and the OPS (http://www.news.ops.gov.ph). PND-OPS stories are provided to the Malacañang
Press Corps (MPC) and other media outlets for the latest information on the
Presidency. ----- 9. A respectful comment on a guru’s
comment Fr. Ranhiliio Callangan Aquino Dean, Graduate School of Law San Beda College I was not sure whether I would write this piece
commenting on Fr. Joaquin Bernas’ Monday piece on the Supreme Court’s judgment
in the Neri case. But what finally convinced me that I could dare to write was
the thought that one way of honouring one of this nation’s leading lights in
constitutional law was to take him as he would have wanted to be taken –
academically and with utmost seriousness. I do not read the Supreme Court majority decision
as curtailing Senate’s right to inquire; neither do I see how it would impair
the efficacy of such actions as a petition for a writ of habeas data. I read the
Court rather as underscoring what the US Supreme Court had taught in Nixon: That
a generalized claim to executive privilege could not prevail against the
specific purpose of criminal prosecution. Significantly, our Supreme Court
characterizes communications with and from the President with advisors as
"presumptively privileged" – the presumption being refutable. I also read the
Supreme Court as ruling that a generalized claim on the part of Senate (or the
House) that it needs the information will not be sufficient to defeat a specific
claim of executive privilege. Malacañang had claimed that the information the
Senate sought related to the exercise of the power of the President to enter
into foreign relations – a power textually committed to the office of the
President. That, for the majority, was specific enough a claim. In that respect,
Malacañang’s claim distinguished itself from Nixon’s claim of privilege that the
US Supreme Court had characterized as "generalized". It was then for the Senate
to show why it specifically needed the information; more particularly, the Court
wanted to be shown how the information Senate sought related to legislation that
it intended to pass, and this, in the appreciation of the Supreme Court, Senate
failed to do. Of course, given the particulars of this case,
almost everybody would have wanted Chairman Neri to respond to the questions,
but I also think it laudable that the Court preferred to prescind from the
specifics of this particular case and look to and enunciate the constitutional
principles governing Congress’ powers of inquiry and the Executive’s claim to
privilege. With these remarks, I make a profound bow to Fr.
Joaquin, with every assurance that I continue to acknowledge his superior
understanding of our country’s fundamental law, but also with the confidence
that the true academic that he is, he will not begrudge me for my
views.
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