The Department of Energy (DOE) has unveiled an updated Philippine Energy Plan (PEP) that aims to attract new investments worth P1.416 trillion to meet future demand, especially in generation of electricity and provision of energy-related services.

Under the energy plan, the bulk of the money, P637.14 billion, would go to the country’s power development program.

The amount does not include investments needed to develop various energy sources, such as geothermal, hydropower, and other renewable energy resources.

Social responsibility programs, such as electrification, will also need significant investment of about P106 billion, based on the DOE’s projection.

Energy Secretary Vincent S. Perez said that the magnitude of investments being lured, primarily from the private sector, is aimed at achieving stable, secure, accessible and reasonably-priced energy supply.

Perez has assured investors that the government is preparing measures that would address their concerns.

Perez noted that energy demand would certainly inch up starting this year taking into consideration the 4.5 percent gross domestic product (GDP) growth registered in 2003.

Based on the DOE’s assumptions, the country’s energy demand would climb by 3.9 percent during the planning period. The increase is seen as coming from growing demand in natural gas.

The road to peace may be long and arduous but the government wants to take the right step in its efforts to finally end the decades-old communist insurgency in the country – by way of a send-off mass to the government peace panel negotiating with the CPP-NPA-NDF in Oslo, Norway.

No less than President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will attend the mass slated tomorrow at the Our Lady of Peace Shrine in EDSA starting at 8 A.M.

The mass, according to the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita Deles, is but a fitting send-off to the government panel which leaves later in the evening for Oslo for the formal peace talks with the National Democratic Front, political arm of the Communist Party of the Philippines, headed by Luis Jalandoni.

Invited to the mass to be held tomorrow are former Presidents Fidel Ramos and Corazon Aquino as well as government officials and members of the diplomatic corps.

"There can be no fitting place to hold the send off mass than at the Our Lady of Peace Shrine in EDSA," said Deles.

The formal peace talks, slated Feb. 10-13, will be facilitated by the Norwegian government, which agreed to be the third party facilitator after the outbreak of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in China forced the cancellation of the talks in Beijing.

The two panels also considered the holding of the talks in Hanoi, Vietnam but scrapped the plan due to the outbreak of the avian influenza virus or more popularly known as the bird flu.

Silvestre Bello III, head of the government peace panel, expressed confidence that the two parties would be able to make a breakthrough following the exploratory talks of the past two years.

"We are confident we can address the issues and concerns this time," Bello said. "We hope the NDF will keep an open spirit to understand the position of government and help it address the root causes of our socio-economic ills."

I enjoin our people to help in safeguarding the sanctity of the ballot and to ensure honest and orderly elections by providing information to the Comelec regarding electoral fraud in their localities.

The Office of the President is prepared to answer the issue of premature campaigning in the proper forum.

The information campaign on governance activities and accomplishments has been going on for sometime now and it is unfair for development-oriented information materials to be lumped up with campaign materials.

It just so happens that the President has chalked up many accomplishments that are reflected in signboards, posters and streamers.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has appealed to local government officials not to waste in politicking their remaining days in office but instead devote the time to working for the improvement of the lives of their constituents.

The President spoke Friday afternoon at the opening the 6^th Philippine Councilors’ League (PCL) National Assembly at the World Trade Center on Roxas Blvd., in Manila.

"Huwag nating sayangin ang nalalabing panahon ng ating termino sa pulitika lamang. Gamitin natin itong panahon na ito para makadagdag pa tayo ng paglilingkod para sa karaniwang Pilipino. Iyan ang transformational politics. (Let’s not waste our remaining days in office just for politicking. Let’s use our it to further help the ordinary Filipinos. That is transformational politics)," she said.

The President received warm welcome from some 6,000 delegates led by PCL president Salvador Pangilinan of Makati City, PCL chairman Froilan Melendrez of Cotabato City, Mayor Joselito Atienza of Manila, president of the Metro Manila Mayors’ League; PCL vice president for Luzon Arecio Rendor Jr. of Oas, Albay, and PCL provincial federation president Lacs Panantaon of Lanao del Sur.

Also present at the assembly were former Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Governor Parouk Hussin, and former PCL president and now Cebu City Vice Mayor Michael Rama.

The President called on the councilors to come up with resolutions and decisions in their national assembly, scheduled to end tomorrow (Sunday) that would commit them to helping the ordinary Filipinos .

In 1999, the President said 20 percent of the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) of local government units (LGUs) had been withheld with the issuance of Executive Order 189 and, thus, reduced the powers of LGUs in implementing various programs.

The President said this could be one of the reasons why the new jobs created at that time were averaging only 350,000 per year.

When President Macapagal-Arroyo repealed Executive Order 189 shortly after her assumption, the withheld IRAs of the LGUs were eventually released.

"Dahil ginamit ninyo ang inyong IRA sa magandang mga allocation tayong lahat nakalikha sa ating ekonomiya mula 2001 hanggang 2004 ng tatlong milyon na bagong trabaho (Because you rightfully allocated your respective IRAs, we have created three million new jobs from 2001 to 2004)," the President said.

Under the President’s term, Atienza said they received their IRAs not only on time, but the full amount for utilization in local government programs.

Atienza said the release of IRA is very crucial to carrying out activities of the local government units, which have been decentralized under the Constitution.

The President also thanked the councilors for providing the health premiums for their indigent constituents that helped place majority of Filipino families under the coverage of the government’s Philhealth insurance program

"Sikapin nating gawing universal, sikapin nating lahat ng Pilipino ay masakop sa Philhealth (Let’s try to make it universal and put all Filipinos under the Philhealth program)," she said.

The President urged the councilors, through their respective councils, to allocate additional funds for the health premiums that would be supplemented by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today called on the people to help safeguard the sanctity of the ballot and ensure clean, honest and orderly elections on May 10, 2004.

The President said, in a statement, that they should report to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) any electoral fraud in their localities.

"We must help the Comelec and trust in its institutional capability to get the job done," she said.

In another development, President Macapagal-Arroyo welcomes the Comelec decision dismissing a petition to disqualify opposition presidential candidate Fernando Poe, Jr. for not being a natural born Filipino, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio R. Bunye said in a radio interview with RMN Networks.

Bunye said that Malacaņang is leaving it to the lawyers if the disqualification case would be elevated to the Supreme Court. "We are focused on governance and on implementing programs that will help improve the living conditions of our people," he added.

He said that an early resolution of the citizenship question by the Supreme Court will be for the good of the people.

At any rate, he said that President Macapagal-Arroyo is ready to face all her opponents in the coming polls.

In responding to a question on the result of a survey by the Social Weather Stations indicating the people have trust and confidence in the Comelec but not its chairman, Benjamin Abalos, Bunye said, "She (the President) also believes in the institutional credibility of the Comelec."

Health Secretary Manuel Dayrit and PhilHealth President Dr. Francisco Duque II today reviewed the concerted efforts to prevent the entry of bird flu into the country and the expanded PhilHealth program to provide for the needs of more poor, in President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s weekly radio message to the nation.

Dayrit, recently named by the President to oversee the measures against bird flu, said the virus that causes bird flu is not in the country but everything is being done to prevent its coming here as it would do great damage to the poultry industry and cost the economy millions.

At this time, the bird flu virus is found only in China, Vietnam, Laos and Thailand where the disease is spreading and human deaths have been reported, Dayrit said, adding the country is still free of it

The government agencies concerned and the private sector are doing all necessary to keep the country free of the virus, Dayrit emphasized.

Importation of live poultry from the affected countries has been banned to prevent the possibility of infecting chickens in the country.

A P250-million fund made available by the President from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) is being used to strengthen the surveillance system against bird flu, Duque said. It includes laboratories and Customs and the Department of Agriculture (veterinary prevention) to insure Philippine birds do not get infected, Duque added.

They are following the same system implemented during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) scare last year when the disease actually got into the country but was contained. The objective now is to prevent the flu virus from ever getting in, Dayrit said.

Upon direction of the President, the universal health insurance program was created to enroll about 25 million more poor Filipinos who do not have the resources for hospitalization, mostly from the marginalized sector, Duque said.

It is funded by P3 billion, half from the PCSO and the other half from the Department of Budget and Management.

The benefits the poor will get from the expanded PhilHealth program cover hospitalization, fees for room, doctors, medicines, laboratory, X-ray and even operations in national hospitals and in the hospitals of the local governments.

To avail of the health and medical services of the new program, all the poor need to do is enroll with their barangay chiefs to get certifications they are truly needy and qualified. The Social Welfare and Development Department will also issue its own certifications after which PhilHealth will prepare and distribute family health cards to the poor.

The new members then only have to present these cards to PhilHealth accredited hospitals which are well-identified to avail of the benefits.

For so long now, residents of Cavite and motorists using the coastal road had to bear with the horrendous traffic in the area, discouraging potential investors to the economic zones of the province.

That may soon be a thing of the past as President Gloria MacapagalArroyo inaugurated today the $117-million extension of the Manila-Cavite Toll Expressway Project (MCTEP) that would not only lessen the traffic but also attract investors into the economic zones of Cavite.

"Magsisimula na itong proyektong ito. Magbibigay na ng trabaho sa construction. At pag natapos na itong daang ito lalo pang dadami ang mamumuhunan sa mga economic zones ng Cavite (This project will soon start and provide jobs in construction. This will attract additional investors to the economic zones of Cavite)," the President said.

The President made the announcement during the groundbreaking of the 11.24-kilometer extension of the MCTEP at the coastal road in Barangay Longos in Bacoor, Cavite.

The President and her party arrived at noontime in Barangay Longos for the laying of the capsule of the Manila-Cavite coastal road extension from Zapote in Las Pinas to Kawit, Cavite.

The President said the extension project would be completed within two years.

Accompanying the President were Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza, Defense Secretary Eduardo Ermita, concurrent Cabinet Officer for Regional Development (CORD) in Region IV; Presidential Adviser for ODA and Priority Project Secretary Marita Jimenez, Presidential Adviser for Key Infrastructure Projects Teddy Encarnacion and former Videogram Regulatory Board (VRB) Chairman Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr.

Welcoming the President were more than 1,000 residents and officials led by Senator Ramon Revilla, the chairman of the Senate committee on public works; former Prime Minister Cesar Virata, Cavite Governor Erineo Maliksi, Vice Governor Juanito Remulla Jr., 1^st District Rep. Plaridel Abaya, Bacoor Mayor Jessie Castillo, Bacoor Vice Mayor Edwin Malvar, Public Estates Authority (PEA) chairman Teodorico Taguinod, Carmona Mayor Roy Loyola, Silang Mayor Ben Madlangsakay, Maragondon Vice Mayor Crisologo Arandia, and Association of Barangay Captains (ABC) chairman Ric Esguerra.

Also present were former Cavite Governors Johnny Remulla and Epimaco Velasco, former Senator Vicente Paterno, Cavite Council adviser Ramon Sy, Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) chairman Jimmy Dumlao, and Philippine National Police (PNP) Regional Director Rey Varilla, and PNP Provincial Director Boysie Rosales.

The Manila-Cavite tollway extension is a joint project among the Public Estates Authority (PEA), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC), and the Coastal Road Corporation (CRC), the holding company of the United Engineers Malaysia-Mara Philippines Corporation, the operators of the toll expressway project.

The President said that during her travel to the United States on November 2001, she worked out with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) office in Washington to provide the additional $70 million financing that the $117-million tollway project needed.

The President said this is part of her foreign policies to attract investors for the benefit of the ordinary Filipinos.