President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today swore into office Dante Lantin as assistant secretary of the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) and Maria Elena Bautista as chairman of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

Bautista, who was formerly an assistant secretary in the Presidential Management Staff, succeeded Lantin as LTFRB chief.

Lantin and Bautista subsequently appeared at a news briefing at Malacanang, and both denied that politics was involved in the reshuffle.

Lantin said that he would not have shown up at the press briefing if he did not accept his transfer to another office, adding that he even told various transport groups to support Bautista in her new duties.

DOTC Secretary Leandro Mendoza, who was present at the oath-taking ceremony and the press briefing, said that Lantin’s responsibility will be enlarged as he will take charge of the department’s land transportation sector.

Bautista said that having no vested interest in land transportation, she will be able to look at problems and propose solutions objectively. But, she asked for a briefing to familiarize herself with the land transportation industry.

DOTC Assistant Secretary Adelberto F. Yap, who headed the Air Transport Office, was named president of the President Diosdado Macapagal International Airport Corp. at Clark Airbase in Pampanga.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today said that the ongoing manhunt for escaped terrorist Fathur Rohman Al-Ghozi is part of the overall security concerns of the government.

In a statement, the President said that when she goes to Mindanao next week, she will not only check on the intensified hunt for Al-Ghozi but also look into "the entire run of peace and development activities that have a bearing on our fight against terrorism and poverty."

The President said that the authorities are not pegging a date for the capture of Al-Ghozi but the hunt, she said, "will be focused, intense and relentless."

‘The dragnet is closing in on him and we are severely limiting his chances of getting through it," the President said.

The military reported earlier this week that Al-Ghozi, an Indonesian bomber who escaped from Philippine National Police jail in Camp Crame along with two Abu Sayyaf terrorists, is somewhere near the town of Tungawan in the Zamboanga area.

Malacaņang has denied reports that Washington has made the capture of Al-Ghozi a condition for the eight-hour visit of US President George W. Bush on Oct. 18.

"Al-Ghozi’s capture is a key event but it is not the whole pie of security. Many other pieces have to be put in place," the President said.

The President flies to Jolo in Sulu on Monday then to Tungawan from where she then proceeds to visit and check the socio-economic projects being pursued in Mindanao.

The projects referred to are funded not only by the national and local governments but also by several multinational agencies through their official development assistance (ODA).

"The President wants to make sure that these are being properly implemented," Presidential Spokesman Ignacio said in a radio interview.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today pushed for creation of some 200,000 jobs in the rural areas by accelerating releases within a month of P1 billion in credits for farmers, fishermen and entrepreneurs in the countryside.

Secretary Rigoberto Tiglao, Presidential Chief of Staff, told a press briefing in Malacaņang that the President, in a meeting this morning with Secretary of Trade and Industry Manuel Roxas II, Secretary of Agriculture Luis Lorenzo, Jr., and Economic Planning Secretary Romulo Neri, observed that credits and financial assistance trickle only to the countryside.

Tiglao said that they agreed to work for quicker releases of credits for various projects sought by farmers, fishermen and rural entrepreneurs. They expected that liquidity will stimulate transactions in the rural areas.

Although the application papers on these projects have already been processed or approved, Lorenzo said at the news briefing, the funds have been pending release.

Lorenzo said that if all the projects would push through, some 200,000 jobs could be created in the rural areas, with most of them not too dependent on the weather factor.

The unemployment rate went down in July 2003 as a result of the loss of many jobs in the agricultural sector due to fluctuation in the weather with an unlikely combination of dry spell and typhoons hitting the different regions of the country.

"This is the modern equivalent of emergency employment program," Tiglao said, adding that the Macapagal-Arroyo administration maintains its program priorities of providing jobs, food and shelter to the Filipino families.

Roxas said that 295,000 jobs have been created in the industrial sector and 254,000 more in the service sector. These jobs were the offshoot of some P10.8 billion loans released in the first half of the year. Another P10 billion will be plowed into both industrial and service sectors in the next six months.

Lorenzo said that the credits will fund projects that the farmers can carry out in between planting and harvesting seasons.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo today took exceptions to Transparency International’s report on perception of corruption in the Philippines, saying that the report, aside from being "old hat," is unfair because it failed to mention some of the reforms undertaken by her government during the past two years.

"We won’t argue with the perception of others but the report is somewhat unfair in that it fails to take into account the deep reforms we have undertaken to stem endemic corruption," the President said in a statement.

The President said that the item at issue is based on the 2002 report of Transparency International on perceptions of corruption among business executives, risk analysts and academics that was published in the web a long time ago.

A more recent report, carried by The Economist in its August 16, 2003 issue, showed that the Philippines is among the top 10 developing countries with the most stable emerging economy based on a survey conducted by the prestigious Lehman Brothers and Eurasia Group.

The survey, which was conducted to measure a country’s ability to withstand crises and to avoid generating them, showed that the Philippines got 60 points out of a maximum stability score of 100.

Among the countries in Asia, only the People’s Republic of China and Thailand surpassed the Philippines’ stability index.

According to the President, the reforms that her government has instituted lie mainly in procedural and policy initiatives that have plugged revenue leaks and cut down kickbacks from business deals.

"We are also backed up by a new procurement law passed by Congress. These advances in good governance have not been very obvious to the media but they have nevertheless blunted the edge of corruption," the President said.

She said that procedural reforms and strict enforcement of ethical standards are making a big difference, but added that it will take some time for perceptions to change.

"Corruption in the Philippines did not grow overnight and will not be defeated in a day," the President said.

In a radio interview, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye cited administrative reforms being carried out within agencies, particularly the electronic procurement system, lifestyle check, and the investigation and actual filing of criminal charges against employees found to have been involved in anomalies.

"The problem of corruption remains a strong challenge for us and we must work together to lessen this," Bunye added.

Bunye said that good governance has been one of the primary concerns of the President from the very start of her administration, and part of that is the elimination or minimization of opportunities for graft and corruption.

The report in The Economist also cited the 4.5 percent gross domestic product (GDP) growth of the Philippines for the first quarter, which was higher than Malaysia’s 4.0 percent, Indonesia’s 3.4 percent, South Korea’s 3.7 percent, and Taiwan’s 3.2 percent.

The country’s GDP, however, decelerated to 3.2 percent for the second quarter of this year. Nonetheless, the Philippines performed better than its neighbors, with South Korea showing only a 1.9 percent growth while the GDP of Singapore contracted by -4.2 percent and that of Taiwan by -0.1 percent.

In her keynote address at the closing session of the l5th general meeting of the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council, held September 3 in Brunei Darussalam, the President said that her administration has been aggressively putting in place economic reforms to sustain growth and significantly improve the long-term prospects for the Philippines.

"We spent the first two years of my administration strengthening our macroeconomic fundamentals and it has paid off with consistent economic growth and low inflation," the President pointed out.

In the Lehman Brothers survey, Hungary emerged as the country with the most stable emerging economy, with a political-stability index of 73 points.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today instructed newly installed Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) President Adelberto Yap to jumpstart the development of the airport now named after her father, former President Diosdado Macapagal, and make it eventually the country’s premier gateway and centerpiece of the development of Central Luzon.

Yap, formerly an Assistant Secretary of the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) and chief of the Air Transportation Office, bared this today as she echoed the President’s desire to make it initially a complimentary gateway to the overcrowded Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

The President, according to Yap, has instructed him to likewise reorganize the CIAC to make it responsive in the event that the airport will have to take over as the country’s premier gateway.

"We are all aware that NAIA has only one runway compared to Clark which has 3.6 km. of runway," Yap said. "I think it would be ideal to allow a lot of incoming traffic to Clark because ultimately it will be the premier airport."

Yap said convenience of passengers would not be sacrificed in the event that the airport becomes fully operational since there are plans for the creation of the North Rail from Clark to Manila that will eventually stretch to Laoag City in Ilocos Norte.

He said the President has yet to give him a target deadline to make the airport fully operational but hastened to add that presently United Parcel Service (UPS) and other airlines are already using the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA). "FedEx is also transferring," he said.

At present, Yap explained, the airport can only accommodate three plane roads of passengers, making it necessary for the building of a new passenger terminal.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today said a culture of peace and security could be achieved if the root causes of conflict are properly addressed.

"Even in a time of strife, a culture of peace shall prosper as long as we remain steadfast in addressing not only the immediate causes of conflict, but by boldly striking at its roots -- inequity, injustice, economic exclusion," the President told participants of the Global Cooperation Society (GCS) 2003 International Convention and Peace Conference which opened this morning at the Century Park Hotel in Manila.

The President was welcomed at the hotel by Manila Mayor Joselito Atienza, 5^th District Rep. Joey Hizon, Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Commissioner Dr. Manuel Punzal, and Dr. Young Seek Choue, the founder and president of GCS International.

The President said the government’s efforts in addressing the root causes of conflict in Mindanao have brought in valiant allies.

These include Malaysia, which has agreed to host the resumption of the peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the United States, which has committed to play a key role in post-conflict rehabilitation, and the member states of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), which provide a broad backdrop of support and assistance.

She said the Philippines has also initiated with Indonesia and Malaysia an agreement committed to practical measures against terrorism, an accord other countries in Southeast Asia have since acceded to in the name of regional peace.

"Peace is something that no nation can achieve alone," she said.

The President said the hope for world peace brought by the declaration of the United Nations of Year 2000 as the International Year of Culture and Peace was shattered on September 11, 2001 "by a senseless and shameless act of terrorism."

From then on, she said the world was put on danger alert "that we cannot forever be held hostage to terror."

"We must hunt down terrorists, hold down the threat and never capitulate even as we strive to win the peace at all cost by dint of our durable unity and resolve," she said.

She said the presence of the 250 Koreans and 100 other foreign delegates in the conference here proves that no amount of senseless and shameless violence could shatter the world’s quest for peace.

"Peace is ours to hold and we shall not let go as long as there are men and women who promote a culture of peace," she told the participants.

Here in the Philippines, she said the hunt for Indonesian international terrorist Fathur Rohman Al-Ghozi, who is believed to be hiding in the jungles of Mindanao, would be focused, intense and relentless.

She said she would visit Mindanao next week not only to check on the hunt for Al-Ghozi but also on the government’s peace and development initiatives to address terrorism and poverty.

She also lauded Dr. Young Seek Choue whom she and her father President Diosdado Macapagal consider as "one of the great prophets of peace in our contemporary history."

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has constituted an independent fact-finding commission that will look into allegations of military involvement in the March 4, April 2 and April 3, 2003 bombings in Davao City.

In a press briefing in Malacaņang, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye enumerated the members of the Commission as follows: Fr. Pedro B. Maniwang, chairman, and Anita Alfelor Alagaban, Joji Ilagan Bian, Naguib G. Sinarimbo, and a representative from the Department of Justice as members.

In Administrative Order No. 84, the President gave the Commission 30 days from the date of constitution within which to conduct its investigation and submit recommendations to the President.

The Commission shall have these powers and functions:

• possess all the powers of an investigative body, including the power to summon witnesses, administer oath, take testimony or evidence relevant to the investigation and to issue compulsory processes to produce documents, books and records;

• call upon any agency of the government for assistance as it may require in the discharge of its functions; and

• perform any and all acts as may be necessary and appropriate to this AO subject to the approval of the President.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today conferred the two highest government service awards to 15 extraordinary state workers for their exemplary ethical behavior and outstanding public service.

Among 120 nominees nationwide, nine government employees received the Lingkod Bayan Award for their outstanding individual performances of national impact. Six others were given the Dangal ng Bayan Award.

Highlighting the month-long celebration of the 103^rd anniversary of the Philippine Civil Service, the conferment of the awards was the result of a rigid, painstaking nationwide search for top government workers made by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) under its Honor Awards Program.

In a simple ceremony held at Malacaņang’s Ceremonial Hall, the President handed over a gold-gilded medallion and a plaque to each of the Lingkod ng Bayan awardees. The Dangal ng Bayan awardees received trophies designed by National Artist Napoleon Abueva.

The Lingkod ng Bayan awardees were Helen S. Bagasao, Cabanatuan City Social Welfare and Development Officer; Fortunato B. Bulao, assistant provincial manager of the National Food Authority in Lingayen, Pangasinan; Cleofas R. Cervancia, Professor III at the Institute of Biological Sciences of the University of the Philippines in Los Banos, Laguna; Leoncio P. Deriada, Professor IV of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas in Maig-ao, Iloilo; Paul A. Evangelista, chief of the Culion Sanitarium and General Hospital in Culion, Palawan; Senior Inspector Wilberto Rico Neil A. Kwan Tiu, City Fire Marshal of the Bureau of Fire Protection; Flordeliza R. Mayari, assistant schools division superintendent of the Department of Education in the Division of Marikina City; Federico L. Ocampo, community environment and natural resources officer of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Gumaca, Quezon; and Ester B. Ogena, director, Science Education Institute of the Department of Science and Technology in Taguig, Metro Manila.

The Dangal ng Bayan awardees were Cheryll J. Apalisoc, State auditor II of the Commission on Audit; Abdurasad Z. Daung, utility worker of Philippine Coconut Authority in Zamboanga City; Susan G. Dignadice, Midwife III at Municipal government of Ajuy, Iloilo; Herminia A. Ibarra, a utility worker from Antipolo City; Bernardo DG. Navarette, driver III of the Philippine Postal Corporation in Manila; and Mila T. Segovia, social welfare officer III of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Davao City.

CSC Chair Karina Constantino-David and Commissioner Jose Erestain, Jr. assisted the President in distributing the plaque and trophies to the awardees.

Each of the 15 awardees also received a P100,000 cash bonus and will get automatic promotions to the next higher position in their respective agencies and a salary increase equivalent to the next higher position.

The awardees were also granted scholarships from the University of Philippines System, Philippines Normal University and Technological University of the Philippines; one-year personal accident insurance coverage courtesy of the Insular Life Assurance Company Ltd.; Suki cards from Mercury Drug Corporation; and financial assistance from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.

During the ceremony, David also presented to the President the four individual Pagasa Awards recipients namely: Antonia P. Dagala, MPA, administrative officer IV of the provincial government of Davao Del Norte; Felisa U. Etemadi, professor at University of the Philippines – Cebu College; Juan A. Nagtalon, president of the Misamis Oriental State College of Agriculture and Technology; and Medy F. Tabangay, agricultural technologist from the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist of Palawan.