President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has expressed support and ordered action taken on certain strategic programs presented to her and the Cabinet by the Metro Manila Development Authority yesterday.

The strategic programs were laid out by the MMDA during yesterday’s 14^th Regional Development Council-Regional Peace and Order Council (RDC-RPOC) joint meeting held at the Manila Hotel.

MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando, co-chair of the Metro Manila RDC-RPOC, presented what he called "an honest to goodness" situation of the metropolis, and asked for presidential intervention on vital programs that need government funding and support.

The joint RDC-RPOC meeting was also an opportune time for the President to meet all the city and municipal mayors and congressional representatives of Metro Manila and be apprised of the many concerns of the residents of the metropolis.

Among the strategic programs the MMDA chairman asked the President for consideration and support include the following:

• Sustained clearing of sidewalks of all types of illegal obstruction. The President said that out of the P2.5-billion estimated annual cost of this program, 10 percent will come from the income of the local government units and the rest will be funded by the national government.

• Construction of additional bridges and completion and interconnection of missing links of secondary roads. The President instructed the Department of Public Works and Highways to see if these additional bridges can be included in the President’s Bridge Program which is being implemented throughout the country.

• Review of the United Vehicular Volume Reduction Program, popularly referred to as "color coding," and adoption of other Traffic Demand Measures, and other appropriate traffic schemes in major thoroughfares like EDSA which the President approved.

• Use of the railroad transfer station system to transport garbage in Metro Manila to a waste processing site within a 150-kilometer radius of Metro Manila. The President ordered the implementation of a financing scheme that works like a corporation on this program.

• Effect the complete transfer of flood control functions and responsibilities of the DPWH to MMDA, including the major flood control projects. The President earlier directed the transfer of flood control programs from the DPWH to MMDA.

• Simplification of government transactions by agencies, like issuances of certification, permits, clearances, etc. The President gave instructions to all government agencies to make verifications and clearances required by the different government offices to be inter-agency procedures instead of requiring the public going from office to office, which contributes to commuter traffic.

The strategic programs were part of the short-, medium- and long-term plans for the metropolis which Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye described as viable and workable.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has announced the appointment of former Philippine Ambassador to Australia Delia Domingo-Albert as Undersecretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

The Chief Executive made the announcement during her meeting with officials of the Department of Foreign Affairs yesterday in Malacañang, her first since she assumed the post as Secretary of Foreign Affairs in a concurrent capacity.

Prior to her appointment, Albert was Assistant Secretary of the DFA’s Office of Policy Planning and Coordination.

A career diplomat herself, Albert has represented the Philippines in various capacities in Switzerland, Romania, Hungary, the German Democratic Republic and the Federal Republic of Germany.

She recently returned from her post as Philippine Ambassador to the Commonwealth of Australia with concurrent accreditation to Nauru, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. She also served as Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in Australia in 2001.

A native of Baguio City, Albert began her career in the DFA as Assistant Secretary in the Office of the Secretary of Foreign Affairs in 1967. She passed the Foreign Affairs Service Examinations in 1973.

Before her stint as the country’s Ambassador to Australia, Albert served as Director General of the Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) National Secretariat of the Philippines. As such, she participated in various Asean meetings including the Asean Summit in 1992 and the first APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Summit in 1993.

During the Fourth APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in the Philippines, Albert worked as Secretary General of the Conference Secretariat for which she was commended by the Philippine Senate in its Resolution No. 9 dated November 28, 1996.

Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye today said that his daughter, Atty. Patricia Bunye, has tendered her resignation as spokesperson of First Gentleman Jose Miguel "Mike" Arroyo effective today.

Bunye, who formally assumed the post of press secretary and concurrent presidential spokesman yesterday, made the announcement in a radio interview when asked how he would coordinate with daughter Patricia, who is also serving as spokesperson of the First Gentleman.

He pointed out that his daughter decided to tender her resignation as spokesperson of the First Gentleman to avoid criticism.

"Dahil nakikita natin, there might be siyempre – babatikusin iyan. Sasabihin bakit iyong tatay ay spokesperson ni PGMA, iyong anak ay spokesperson pa kay FG Arroyo (We can see that there might be criticisms there. The critics might say that the father is spokesperson of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo while the daughter is spokesperson of the First Gentleman Arroyo)," he said.

During his press briefing at Malacañang yesterday Bunye said that aside from his job as press secretary, he will also perform the role of presidential spokesman but only until October when Rigoberto "Bobi" Tiglao will reassume the post.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has ordered concerned government agencies to expedite all ongoing Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) projects in Metro Manila, making sure these are completed on time.

The President made the directive during Tuesday’s joint meeting of the Regional Development Council (RDC) and the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC) at the Centennial Hall in Manila Hotel.

Attended by the Cabinet, regional directors and private sector representatives, the meeting is the 14^th RDC-RPOC for Metro Manila.

Among the ODA projects on traffic infrastructure discussed during the meeting were the Metro Manila Mass Rail Transit Development (Line 2) project, Metro Manila Light Rail Transit (Line1) Capacity Expansion Project Phase II, Metro Manila Interchange Construction IV, Metro Manila Interchange Construction V, and the Metro Manila Urban Transport Integration Project.

Except for the first two, which are having Right of Way and other issues, all the projects are on schedule.

The President also stressed that work should also be hastened on flood-control projects such as the Camanava (Caloocan-Malabon-Navotas-Valenzuela) Area Flood Control, Metro Manila Flood Control Project-West of Manggahan Floodway, engineering services for the Pasig-Marikina River Channel Improvement and the Manila Second Sewerage Project. She cited the fast rate of work on the Marikina River project.

She noted delays in the implementation of environment-related projects, and said these should be avoided.

The projects included the Pasig River Environment Management and Rehabilitation Sector Development Program, Metro Manila Air Quality Improvement Sector Development Program (MMAQISDP), the MMAQISDP-Air Pollution Control Facility and the MMAQI Investment Loan.

Also taken up were the implementation of human development projects such as the Upgrading of the Eulogio Rodriguez Sr. Memorial Hospital, the Hospital Waste Treatment project, Upgrading of the Medical Equipment of the Department of Emergency Medical Services Complex and the Creation of the National Eye Referral Center.

Interregional ODA projects are the Technical Education and Skills Development Project, Expansion of Dual Education Training Project, Promotion of Ship Inspection System and Technique Project, Rural Micro-Enterprise Finance Project and the Vulnerable Groups Facility Project.

The completion of all these projects will bring about socio-economic benefits for Metro Manila’s 9.9 million people.

TAGBILARAN CITY – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today said the entire government machinery is committed to stamp out corruption in public offices even as she agreed with the observation of the business community that corruption indeed impedes investment flows into the country.

In her opening statement at the start of the joint meeting of the Regional Development Council-Regional Peace and Order Council (RDC-RPOC) for Region VII held at the Tropics Resort here, the President also called on the local government executives throughout the country to be very vigorous in the fight against crime and corruption.

The President said that she has ordered the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC) to submit their own reports on the works they are doing in going after perpetrators of graft and corruption in government.

"I believe too, like the business community, that corruption discourages investment flow," the President said.

The PAGC, she said, is doing its job to ensure that good governance is carried out in all levels of the bureaucracy.

With regards to the corruption involving the courts, the President stressed that this would need special attention because of the separation of powers between the executive and the judiciary as stipulated in the Constitution.

In order to fight this dilemma, the President said, the executive branch would work with the leaders of Congress to come out with law on how to fight corruption among the judges.

"I would like to ask the whole Cabinet, the whole executive branch including the local government executives to be very vigorous in this campaign against corruption, against crime, and, of course, look forward to the legislative initiatives on Congress to help us fight corruption in the judiciary," the President said.

The President said that what the executive branch could do in the meantime is to tighten up the prosecution of cases filed against members of the bench in the DOJ as part of cleansing the judicial system.

On the peace and order problem, the Chief Executive said she will expound more on the issue during her second State of the Nation Address (SONA) this coming Monday.

To further bolster the government anti-crime campaign, the President said she has already given newly designated Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Deputy Director Gen. Hermogenes Ebdane, Jr. to eliminate kidnapping in one year.

On the anti-smuggling, Mrs. Macapagal-Arroyo said she has also instructed Customs Commissioner Antonio Bernardo to charge those smugglers who will be caught not just with smuggling but with economic sabotage.

"Just like in kidnapping, we are not going to resolve it crime by crime but criminal by criminal," the President stressed.

TAGBILARAN CITY -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today called for the immediate development of Bohol’s natural resources and eco-tourism spots, stressing that this would be a very potent growth sector for the future.

Speaking in fluent Bol-anon and Cebuano before a large crowd at the Carlos P. Garcia Memorial Sports Complex here, the President cited Bohol as one of the country’s most progressive areas as it is endowed with rich natural resources.

She noted the presence of the world-renowned Chocolate Hills, Panglao Bay and the diving spots in Balingasan, among others, plus the natural hospitality of Boholanos, as big factors in promoting Bohol as a vibrant tourist destination.

She recalled having said in her State of the Nation Address in July last year that "we will promote fast-growing industries where high-value jobs are most plentiful. One of them is tourism."

"We have the competitive edge in tourism, in the natural wonders of our country and the natural warmth of our people," she said.

Tourism, she added, is one of the "two identified growth sectors of the future. The other is information and communication technology."

McKenzie Associates, who put together the country’s strategic tourism plan, named the Cebu-Bohol Tourism Complex "the number one area, by far, in the Philippines" for tourism promotion and development, she said.

To provide the means to take the tourists to primary natural wonders of the country and Bohol, the President disclosed the expansion of the Tagbilaran City airport to accommodate bigger planes like the Boeing 737s.

She said the Philippine Ports Authority is also working on expanding the seaport to the tune of P100 million. "This shall be a big help to your tourism because it will facilitate the movement of tourists between Cebu and Bohol so that Cebu and Bohol will be truly one, unified tourism attraction."

She added that tourism would be made more attractive in the area with the implementation of the P2.1-billion Leyte-Bohol Power Interconnection Project Phase II "so that Bohol will not lack in electricity."

She also cited work on the P1.07-billion Bohol Circumferential Road Improvement Phase II would complement ongoing tourism efforts. Similarly, work would also be undertaken on the Panglao circumferential road and Loay tourism highway.

Meanwhile, the President stressed the imperative need to give due attention to the bulk of the poor in Bohol who are in agriculture.

"Thus, we need agricultural modernization in Bohol," she said, as she named the P2.384-billion Bohol Irrigation Project Stage II as one of the major projects being implemented to the benefit of the area’s farm workers. Another project is the Talibon Reservoir Irrigation Project.

She said she had directed concerned Cabinet Secretaries to speed up the processing of documents so that tourism and agriculture projects would be carried out soonest in Bohol.

Earlier, the President cited Bohol as the site of the famous blood compact between Datu Sikatuna and Spanish General Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, which anniversary the locals are celebrating today in the Sandugo (One Blood) Festival.

National Artists Juan Luna and Carlos "Botong" Francisco vividly put on canvas the blood compact, which was to spur friendship and cooperation for peace and growth between the natives of Bohol and the Spanish colonizers.

She noted the Boholanos for being good examples for Filipinos nationwide.

Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye today said that the restoration to Metro Manila mayors of the administrative control over the elements of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in their areas of jurisdiction is more effective than just operational control.

In his press briefing in Malacañang, Bunye explained that what is covered by the present arrangement between the PNP and the Metro Manila mayors is only operational control which, he said, is very different from administrative control.

"Administrative control already includes the hiring and firing of policemen. In operational control, you can just deploy police forces within your municipality," he said.

However, when it comes to reviewing the police force for possible promotion, it will be a different matter, Bunye said. "They are reporting to somebody else and they are beholden to the one who will decide on their promotions or other benefits," Bunye said.

"So this administrative control will really make it a more effective type of control," he added.

Bunye said that before martial law, mayors all over the country had both administrative and operational control over police forces.

Although in some cases, the police were used as private armies by some abusive local executives in those days, Bunye, however, said that there was such a thing as Philippine Constabulary (PC) control at that time.

"At that time when the Philippine Constabulary thinks that a mayor or a governor was abusing his powers, then it could place a particular police force under PC control," Bunye recalled.

"So maybe under this set up, if administrative and operational control are reverted to Metro Manila mayors, then perhaps the National Police Commission, which has overall supervision of the police forces, could place back the police forces under Napolcom control in the event that some abuses are done by the local government officials," Bunye said.

During the 14^th Regional Development Council-Regional Peace and Order Council (RDC-RPOC) joint meeting at the Manila Hotel yesterday, the President approved the proposal of Metro Manila mayors to restore to them administrative control over PNP forces in their respective areas.

TAGBILARAN CITY – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today signed an amendment to Proclamation 468 dated Sept. 26, 1994, declaring the land around or in between Chocolate Hills as no longer part of the national monument.

The President signed the amended proclamation midway her speech at the re-enactment of the Sandugo (blood compact) between Datu Sikatuna and Spanish navigator Miguel Lopez de Legaspi at the Carlos P. Garcia Sports Complex here.

The tracts of land surrounding and within the famous tourist spot shall be developed by the provincial government and other entities that have control over the area, the amendment said.

Presidential Management Staff Undersecretary Ricardo Saludo said the amended proclamation would ensure that the areas that have to be preserved are preserved while those that could be developed would be excluded from the national monument area and classified as inalienable and disposable by the government.

The President initially decided on the issue during the joint meeting of the Regional Development Council-Regional Peace and Order Council (RDC-RPOC) of Region VII which was conducted at the Tropics Resort here.

"This is what strong and resolute leadership means. You don’t wait and you just make a decision if it is for the good of the community," Saludo said.

Another issue raised by provincial and local officials during the RDC-RPOC meeting was the purported shortage of funding for local government unit (LGU) projects.

The President immediately instructed the Department of the Interior and Local Government to help LGUs set up units that would formulate solid or good project proposals.

These proposals, Saludo said, could then be presented to local and foreign funding agencies, to generate money for the projects.

"A lot of the times, you have LGUs that have good ideas but they do not have the technical expertise to package this into project proposals," Saludo said.

From her own experience as former Undersecretary of the Department of Trade and Industry and later as Secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the President pointed out that it really takes a unit to produce project studies.

Malacañang today expressed confidence that the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) would finally put to rest the eight-month old murder of popular Filipino actress Nida Blanca.

In a press briefing, newly designated Press Secretary and Acting Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the NBI was moving in the right direction in so far as the murder case was concerned.

The NBI has this afternoon filed before the Department of Justice’s Prosecutor’s Office a case against several suspects in the Blanca slay.

"I think everybody will be happy that this 8-month old case will finally be put to rest. Of course, assuming that the National Bureau of Investigation has foolproof evidence to nail the persons who were really responsible," Bunye said.

Malacañang today called on some sectors not to allow the recent statement of US Ambassador Francis Ricciardone about corruption in the country to spark a diplomatic row and damage Philippine-American relations.

In his regular press briefing in Malacanang, Press Secretary Ignacio "Toting" Bunye said that "we should not be very defensive and I think we should not allow the incident to escalate into a diplomatic crisis."

"As I said we should not bloat it further than what is necessary," Bunye said.

Bunye was reacting to reports that some congressional leaders and media personalities have demanded a public apology from the US envoy after he remarked in a forum that widespread corruption in the Philippines was driving away potential investors.

In her remarks at the opening of the joint meeting of the Regional Development Council and Regional Peace and Order Council (RDC-RPOC) of Region VII held in Tagbilaran City this morning, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo herself agreed with the observation that graft and corruption impedes the flow of foreign investments into the country.

The President, however, emphasized that the entire government machinery is committed to wipe out public corruption with the support of the local governments, Congress and the judiciary.

While Bunye admitted that there is "some truth" to the US envoy’s observation, the administration is addressing this problem with resolve.

"We have to equally emphasize, we have to doubly stress that the government is doing something about this corruption problem," Bunye said.

He said that the best thing to do is to leave the matter "at that for the time being."

TAGBILARAN CITY – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today led the awarding of some P167.3 million worth of agricultural implements and various equipments, fishing gear and other means of livelihood for the different individual and group beneficiaries in this province.

In a ceremony during the celebration of "Sandugo" (blood compact) festival at the Carlos P. Garcia Sports Complex here, the President also handed over certificates of occupancy for 20 beneficiaries from Purok 1, Barangay Cabawn, Tagbilaran City under the "Gawad Kalinga" Build program of Couples for Christ. The said project was funded by the President’s Social Fund.

Aside from the certificates of occupancy, the President also awarded emancipation patents and certificates of land ownership awards to 356 agrarian reform beneficiaries covering 506 hectares of land in the province of Bohol.

From the Department of Health, the President distributed 1,775 health cards under Plan 500 to beneficiaries in Tagbilaran City and the towns of Loon and Loay.

Other awards and benefits distributed by the President during the Sandugo celebration were the Barangay Official Eligibility (BOE) to 88 qualified officials in Bohol; certificates of completion of the Banlasan-San Isidro farm-to-market road and restoration of damaged box culvert and roadway project; certificate of completion on the construction and rehabilitation of 16 units of hand pumps; certificate of completion on the construction of a rural health unit building in Poblacion, Dagohoy, Bohol; certificate of completion of the Hinlayagan, San Isidro Road; certificate of completion of the Carmen District Hospital; financial assistance certificates under the Private Education Student Financial Assistance (PESFA) for technical education and skills development to 113 student grantees; scholarship certificates under the GMA Scholarship Program to 372 students from the towns of Dagohoy and Danao; 10 checks under the GMA Cares program amounting to P3.4 million for 10 local government units in Bohol; five units of 4-wheel 90 horsepower farm tractor with complete accessories amounting to P15 million to the province of Bohol under the Corn-Based Agri-Business System Technology (COAST) project; and fishing supplies consisting of fishing nets, ropes, straw, seaweed seedlings for the 15 members of the Alumar’s Fishermen’s Association and the Macaas Fishermen’s Association.

To further enliven the Sandugo celebration, the DOH has put up a booth selling medicines under the "Gamot na Mabisa’t Abot Kaya (GMA 50) and Parallel Drug Importation Program.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), in coordination with Presidential Adviser for Jobs Generation Luis Lorenzo also held jobs fair at the Central Visayas School of Fisheries, Forestry, Agriculture and Technology here in Tagbilaran City.