TORRIJOS, Marinduque -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today led the commemoration of the 102nd anniversary of the Battle of Pulang Lupa in Barangay Bolo here, a mountainous part of the province overlooking Tayabas Bay, Mongpong Pass and Tablas Strait.

The President was accorded foyer honors immediately after she arrived here by a helicopter, including a 21- gun salute. Afterwards, she led the flag-raising ceremony.

Shortly after, the President led in the lowering of the flag to half-mast to honor those who lost their lives in the battle.

According to history, there are only five battles that the Filipinos won in the Filipino-American war, one of which was the Battle of Pulang Lupa.

The leader of the Filipino guerilla group was Colonel Maximo Abad. In her brief remarks, the President noted the heroism shown by the native Marinduquenos in the battle against the American soldiers.

The President said that Filipinos were able to overpower the many American soldiers, including Capt. Devereau Shields of the then 29th Infantry of the United States Army.

She noted that the Americans were our enemies then but now, they are our allies. "Sa kasalukuyan, kaibigan natin sila (Now, they are our friends)," the President said.

In entreating the Marinduquenos to continue remembering the heroism shown by their forefathers, the President called on the people to support her efforts to build a strong Republic.

The President said the war this time is not against foreign enemies but against poverty.

She urged the local folk to resist the communist rebels who come to their areas but rally behind the government.

During the commemoration, the President was accorded a "puton," a traditional welcome ritual, steeped in color and mirth, done through song and dance. It is indigenous only to the province.

The President was turned into a queen (if only for a while) by placing her on a throne, crowning her and showering her with flowers and butterflies so that her wishes, as they say, would come true.

In her brief remarks, the President cited this rich tradition, saying that Marinduquenous are noted for their hospitability to visitors.

She also announced that she will be giving out P6 million to the province to be distributed to the six towns under her "One-Product, One-Town, One Million Peso Enterprise" program.

At least 219 big power users stand to benefit, starting this month, from the Special Package to Enhance Electricity Demand (SPEED), a program that gives discounts to large end-users for energy consumed above the customer’s baseline load.

The SPEED program will be expanded to cover another 437 customers in October, said a report from the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) outlining achievements made against targets set in the State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

The report said beneficiaries could avail themselves of a fixed discount of P0.92 per kilowatthour from the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) and P0.80 per kilowatthour from the National Power Corp. (Napocor) for their respective customers from one month up to 24 months.

The SPEED’s program implementors are the Departments of Energy (DOE) and of Trade and Industry (DTI).

The adoption of SPEED is in response to the President’s directive in her Second SONA "to work together to give price incentives to large users so that excess power can be utilized, economic activity can be encouraged, and jobs can be created."

Large power users, usually manufacturing firms, would be able to reduce their electricity costs. Generated savings could be channeled to more benefits for their workers.

Meanwhile, the DOE and the Departments of Finance (DOF) and of Justice (DOJ) and the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) are working on concrete courses of action stemming from results of recent reviews of state contracts with Independent Power Producers (IPP).

The four agencies hoped to complete their tasks in three months.

On one hand, the DOJ and the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM) would be formulating an action plan on five IPP contracts with legal and financial issues.

Both agencies would also prepare and file actions against contracting parties and officials responsible for terms unfavorable to government.

On the other hand, the DOE and PSALM would take steps to arrive at an acceptable solution on 22 IPP contracts requiring further study and clarification of financial terms.

Further, the NEDA and the DOJ would enhance terms on two IPP contracts with remedial policy issues and would undertake administrative measures, as necessary.

The PMS report further noted government gains in strengthening of the operations of electric cooperatives (EC) nationwide.

It said the National Electrification Administration (NEA) had met with EC officials last July 25 and August 6.

In the meetings, it was agreed that a "people’s criteria," or the parameters by which ECs would be judged by customers, would be set up. The parameters included efficiency and reliable delivery of power, prompt services, affordability and reasonableness of power rates.

It was also agreed that ECs belonging to categories A+, A and B would submit their performance improvement plans (PIP) while those in categories C, D and E would submit their rehabilitation plans (RP).

Recent reports showed that of the 119 ECs, 30 have submitted their PIPs while 22 gave their RPs.

Besides this, the ECs have continued to carry out Task Force Kapatid whereby they voluntarily assist each other in energizing critical areas.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today ordered the preventive suspension of Lung Center of the Philippines (LCP) Executive Director Dr. Fernando A. Melendres over allegations of corruption and abuse of authority.

Through Administrative Order No. 39, Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo, by authority of the President, directed the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC) to conduct a formal investigation on Melendres, ordering his preventive suspension for 90 days pending the formal investigation and authorizing the Secretary of Health to appoint an interim officer-in-charge of the LCP.

Melendres, according to A.O. No. 39, is the subject of a complaint filed by the members and non-members of the medical staff of the LCP for procurement of presentation banner without public bidding.

The group also charged Melendres with falsification of public documents in the hiring of an architectural consultant, violation of auditing rules on the drawing of petty cash advances to circumvent the law on public bidding of infrastructure projects, and unauthorized implementation of the reorganization plan unapproved by the Board of Trustees of the LCP.

The fact-finding committee created by the LCP Board of Trustees submitted a report finding a prima facie case against Melendres and recommending the filing of formal charges against him.

As a result, the Board of Trustees transmitted the report and the records of the case to the Office of the President and further recommended the preventive suspension against Melendres during the pendency of the investigation against him.

The President also instructed Health Secretary Manuel Dayrit, in his capacity as ex-oficio Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the LCP, to appoint an officer-in-charge of the LCP, to ensure continuity of its operations.

The government unveiled today a plan to reduce the cost of moving cargoes from Mindanao to Manila and thus bring down the cost of basic goods.

Following the presentation of the three-stage "Sustainable Logistics Development Program" (SLDP) by Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) Chairman Vitaliano Naņagas in Malacaņang, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo lauded the DBP for its commitment to support the administration’s regional development program.

Naņagas said the SLDP, the first working draft of a comprehensive regional development plan, is expected to drastically reduce the price of basic commodities in line with the government’s poverty alleviation program and the attainment of food sufficiency at the local, regional and national levels.

The DBP chairman informed the President that the state-owned bank will help catalyze private sector participation in the SLDP, which is a basic infrastructure for the efficient movement of basic commodities through the introduction of modern storage handling and transport system under proper quality control management.

The SLDP has three components: the establishment of a grains highway, a road-roro (roll-on, roll-off) ferry network, and a cold chain.

Naņagas pointed out that what the DBP will try to do is to work with the private sector and with the rest of the government in order to have investments in areas of the logistics plan that will connect the Philippines in terms of the three components.

The grains highway will provide better transporting of grains from where it is produced to where it is consumed.

Nanagas said the road-roro network will take care of the cargo requirements of the entire country, moving it from producer to end-user in a more efficient way.

The cold chain will provide the transport of goods that includes fruits, vegetables, fish, chicken and other perishable items.

Naņagas explained that based on a study undertaken by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), waste and spoilage in transporting fruits and vegetables from farmlands to end-users is about 40 percent valued at roughly P30 billion annually.

"That 40 percent is a little bit too much and so we want to put a transport system that will reduce that number to a more manageable 20 percent," Naņagas told reporters in a press briefing in Malacanang.

In the case of transporting corn, spillage loss is about 20 percent of national production, amounting to P4.5 billion annually.

The program, the President said, is work in progress, as it covers a lot of areas and more studies and coordination with agencies concerned.

"We would finance for example private sector investors who would want to buy or operate ro-ro," Naņagas said.

According to Naņagas, the DBP has had experience in doing such project since they have identified specific areas in the country where improvements can be made.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today instructed newly appointed special envoy to Iraq and former Armed Forces Chief of Staff retired General Roy Cimatu to ensure the protection of all Filipinos in Iraq once the United States launches an attack in that country

Press Secretary and Acting Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the President and Cimatu met this afternoon to discuss the matter at Malacaņang.

During his regular press briefing, Bunye said the President and Cimatu agreed on the evacuation of Filipinos in Iraq, particularly the overseas Filipino workers.

"The instruction given to the special envoy, of course, is to ensure the safety and the protection of our countrymen," he said.

He added that the President asked Cimatu to submit, on a regular basis, an assessment of the situation in Iraq. This would be the basis for any further action by the Philippine government.

Bunye said he did not know when Cimatu would leave for Iraq and other neighboring Middle East countries where Filipinos stayed.

"I am sure he will be going to more than one country because our countrymen or the Filipinos are located in several places. The smallest concentration of Filipinos actually is in Baghdad, but there are many more in surrounding countries," he said.

1. Both the government of Malaysia and the Philippines wish to reaffirm their close and warm relationships as portrayed by the excellent rapport between Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir and President Arroyo. Their close ties is very much valued by both countries and would be continued and further strengthened.

2. In response to the concern raised by the Philippines vis-ā-vis the deportation of Filipinos, Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir had acted expeditiously by directing the full investigation on the matter. Malaysia will take the necessary actions against those who are found to have breached the law based on the investigation currently being conducted. Meanwhile, both Malaysia and the Philippines would like to see that this issue should not be sensationalized to the extent that it would jeopardize the existing good relationship between both countries.

3. Both countries wish to also express resolute commitment to pursue the fight against terrorism not only in their own individual countries but also in the region. Malaysia and the Philippines are committed to operationalize the trilateral agreement signed together with Indonesia in the war against terrorism. Towards this end, the Malaysian and the Philippine Armed Forces will continue to build the existing close cooperation, particularly in the border areas in order to eliminate all forms of terrorism.

4. The Philippines appreciates the continuing cooperation and initiative being extended by Malaysia in pursuing the peace in Muslim Mindanao. The Philippines particularly values the concurrence of Malaysia to stop any attempt at promoting violence and separatism among various Muslim communities in Southern Philippines.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas F. Ople said today the Philippines views with concern the issues raised by the U.S. President George W. Bush before the United Nations General Assembly yesterday, and expressed the hope that a peaceful solution could be found to forestall the conflict.

"I do not want to speculate on what is going to happen but I hope the UN can find a solution that would be mutually acceptable to the US, Iraq and the larger community of nations," he said.

"The US demands are serious and should be immediately discussed by the UN Security Council with the end in view of preventing war and seing to it that the most urgent concerns mentioned by President Bush are addressed," he said.

Ople reiterated that all diplomatic initiatives, especially within the framework of the UN Security Council, should be exhausted before any attack is staged on Iraq.

He added that the most important concern of the Philippines was to get its nationals out of harm’s way and ensuring the stability of the domestic oil supply.

"We are focusing on these two items and corresponding contingency measures have been set up," he said.

"There are also collateral economic and security problems such as the effect on the exchange rate and a possible upsurge in terrorist activities which require our constant vigilance and preparedness," he said.

On efforts to protect Filipinos in the Middle East, Secretary Ople met in New York with Kenzo Oshima, United Nations Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator; Robert Palve, New York Chief of Mission, International organization for Migration; and, Eric Morris, Director, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, to discuss the issue of Filipino deportees in Sabah and Filipinos in the Middle East.

Secretary Ople was able to obtain the commitment of these agencies to include Filipinos in their contingency should the US attack Iraq.

Secretary Ople is also scheduled to meet separately with Foreign Ministers of several Middle East states to discuss the safety and welfare of Filipino workers.