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| 27 AUGUST 2007 | ||
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| 27 AUGUST 2007 | ||
| Statement of Secretary Ignacio R. Bunye |
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Do we want to move forward or do we allow
ourselves to go back to the fractious days of 2005 and 2006? Our gut feel is that the average Filipino wants progress, not politicking. The average Filipino wants to move on and allow the President to focus on the real problems of the nation. |
| PGMA: Sulu, Basilan no war zone; teachers, PMA exams held in Jolo |
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JOLO, Sulu -- Two national examinations were
held here Sunday without any hitches, as life goes on in other parts of Sulu
and Basilan provinces unaffected by the ongoing military operations against
the Abu Sayyaf terrorists and breakaway members of the Moro Islamic
Liberation Front (MILF). The twin exams were the licensure test for teachers, and the Philippine Military Academy Entrance Examinations (PMAEE). The teachers’ exams was the first-ever held in this provincial capital, while the PMAEE test was the first to be conducted here since 1990. Sulu Governor Sakur Tan had announced that some 2,000 residents in and around Sulu had applied to take the teachers’ examinations. The two government examinations were unmarred by the fighting between government troops and Abu Sayyaf bandits elsewhere in Sulu, according to Maj. Gen. Leopoldo Maligalig, PMA superintendent. “I was told that it was even more peaceful in Jolo than in Zamboanga,” Maligalig said, adding that the 85 applicants for the PMA entrance test from the region was a significant number. He said that Amina Rasul, a lieutenant colonel in the reserve corps, had requested him to set up a Jolo exams center after the July 10 ambush staged by the Abu Sayyaf in which 14 Marines were killed, 10 of them decapitated and their private parts mutilated. Maj. Jose Pauly, officer-in-charge of the PMAEE’s Jolo Examination Center, said that of the 85 PMAEE applicants, 57 came from Jolo, 15 from Indanan, seven from Patikul and one from Zamboanga. Eleven of the applicants were females, he added. The holding of the two government examinations here was in keeping with the directive of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for the launching of a “humanitarian offensive” in Sulu and Basilan alongside the military campaign against the Abu Sayyaf terrorists. In Administrative Order No. 192, the President ordered the implementation of a “humanitarian offensive in Basilan, Sulu and other areas of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM),” the poorest region in the country. She pointed out that “economic development remains our principal weapon against terrorism” and that “despite the recent hostilities, Basilan and Sulu are by no means a war zone.” Last Thursday, the President flew to Zamboanga City to preside over a military command conference at the headquarters of the West Mindanao Command (WestMinCom) where she firmed up plans with the military brass and the local governments for a “fullscale development offensive” in the ARMM, especially in Basilan and Sulu. Proctors from Sulu came to help the four-man PMA Jolo team led by Pauly who was assisted by PMA Corps of Professors dean Col. Fermin de Leon, PO3 Macaraeg and Corporal Igusquiza. The PMA team said that the information drive for the PMAEE was fully supported by local officials led by Governor Tan, the various school heads, and by the 104th Brigade under Col. Antonio Supnet. In her Aug. 20 directive, the President ordered that “police and military operations in Basilan and Sulu shall be balanced with fullscale development offensive, a ‘humanitarian invasion,’ so to speak.” The “offensive” consists of, among others, “HELP for Basilan and Sulu Program.” Under HELP, which stands for Health, Education, Livelihood Progress, the President ordered all national government agencies to “contribute projects to the HELP template.” “For instance, the Commission on Higher Education shall offer additional scholarship slots so we can have more Tausug doctors” and the Department of Trade and Industry shall “launch ‘Sulong Sulu, Bangon Basilan’ programs,” the AO said. |
| PGMA visits CDO, Bukidnon to promote Jatropha use |
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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
will visit the agricultural town of Talakag, Bukidnon in Northern Mindanao
tomorrow to discuss the importance of Jatropha curcas propagation as one of
the alternative renewable energy sources that could help minimize the
country’s dependence on imported crude oil and help generate employment and
additional income. From this so-called City of Golden Friendship, the President will fly to Barangay 4 in Talakag town to inspect the Jatropha Demo and Seed Production Farm and explain to the residents through a Pulong Bayan the positive impact of renewable energy in protecting the environment and creating more jobs. Upon her arrival, the President will be briefed via video presentation by Philippine National Oil Co.-Alternative Fuels Corp. (PNOC-AFC) Chairman Rene Velasco on the development status of the 500 hectares Jatropha farm in Talakag and another nursery plantation in Cagayan de Oro City. Aside from these two nursery plants, the government has another 50 hectares of Jatropha farm inside the military camp of Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija. After the Pulong Bayan, the President will fly back to Cagayan de Oro City to attend the 55th founding anniversary of the Radio Mindanao Network (RMN)-DXCC Radio Station. Signed into law in January 2007, Republic Act No. 9367, otherwise known as the Biofuels Act, mandates the use of biofuels in the Philippines. The law requires that a minimum of one percent blend be sold within three months of its effectivity and at least two percent within two years. To meet the demand for biodiesel, the President tasked the PNOC-AFC to set up Jatropha nurseries and plantations and build refinery plants to process oil extracted from Jatropha seeds. Jatropha curcas, locally known as “tuba-tuba” or “tubang bakod,” is now a promising plant for making biofuel because it can grow on poor land and is less likely to displace food crops. |
| PGMA pays tribute to soldiers and policemen in first National Heroes Day celebrated outside Metro Manila |
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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
paid tribute to the valiant men and women of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) during ceremonies
commemorating National Heroes' Day at the Xavier University here this
afternoon. This marked the first time National Heroes' Day was celebrated outside Metro Manila after the President decided to celebrate the momentous occasion "to honor all the heroes of peace in Mindanao." In her speech, the President said that aside from “honoring the memories of our forefathers who saw us through our darkest hours and brought us to the light of democracy and freedom" on this day, “we should also honor classic examples of the gallant soldiers and police, as well as civilians, who have been in the thick of our battle against our Republic's enemies – terrorists, rebels and criminals of the worst kind." Among the members of the AFP who were honored by the President, AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon and Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro were: 2nd Lt. Ruben Barnuevo who was awarded the Gold Cross Medal (posthumous); S/Sgt. Mario Fillarca, 2nd Lt. Noel Nuestro, 2nd Lt. Adrian Mark Gullunan, Sgt. Wilbert Guijaro, Cpl. Robert Adlawan and Private First Class Muhaimin Hamsiraji. "We salute our soldiers and allies for the capture and elimination of key figures of the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah terrorists. Our soldiers have hit them hard and with success," the President said. The families of the slain soldiers and the soldiers who were present to receive their citations were given financial assistance from the President, commendations from Esperon and Teodoro aside from their respective medals. On the PNP side, the awarded personnel were: SPO3 Basil Isad of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Police Regional Office who was promoted to the next higher rank (posthumous) and SPO1 Danilo Nobelfranca of the Police Regional Office in Region 10 who was awarded the Medalya ng Kagalingan (posthumous). Police Senior Inspector Angel Sumagaysay of PRO 11 was also awarded the Medalya ng Kagalingan. The families of the slain policemen were awarded PNP financial assistance checks amounting to P158,000 each, a citation for their heroic acts, and their respective medals. The above-cited AFP and PNP personnel displayed feats of heroism in countering terroristic acts and at the same time gathering valuable information against the terrorists. |
| PGMA to DBM: Use AFP modernization savings for increased combat pay, force protection of soldiers |
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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
instructed the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) today to utilize
the savings realized from the recent bidding for the Armed Forces
modernization program “to increase the combat pay and force protection of
our soldiers and marines.” The President issued the directive in her keynote speech during the observance of National Heroes' Day at the Xavier University gym here this afternoon. "The recent bidding under our Armed Forces modernization resulted to savings of P1.28 billion, with P400 million saved from the squad automatic weapon alone. In thanks for this huge savings of the procurement of our Armed Forces and also in gratitude for our soldiers and marines who gave up their lives in these past battles, I direct the Department of Budget and Management to authorize the Armed Forces to avail of the use of these savings I have just mentioned to increase the combat pay and force protection of our soldiers and marines," the President said. The President explained that these savings and budget allocations for the Armed Forces, which also include the Philippine National Police, were made possible through the strong showing of the economy which, she said, was brought about by the tough fiscal reforms implemented by her administration. Because of these tough fiscal reforms, the President said, "Our overall economy has reached a new level of maturity and stability with some of the strongest macroeconomic fundamentals in a decade." "The single biggest act that led to the surge in our economy was the passage of our Value Added Tax which in one bold stroke raised enormous amounts of new revenue," the President said. "Part of the gains from our economic measures are being used to modernize all the Armed Forces, meaning the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the (Philippine National) Police, and improve their fighting conditions," she added. Aside from the utilization of the Armed Forces savings, the President also approved an additional P150 per day of actual combat allowance to all soldiers in the frontline. With the approval of the President, combat pay of soldiers was effectively raised from the standard P240 a month to P150 a day of actual combat duty. To be able to fund this, the President instructed the DBM to set aside P145 million a year for additional combat pay. Furthermore, the President directed the procurement of 3,000 additional sets of helmet and armored vests on top of the 5,000 helmets and armored vests already procured to better protect "lead elements of units in operations." She said that the 3,000 sets will be distributed equally among the Marines, Special Combat Units and the Army. "These shall be charged to the savings of the Capability Upgrade Program," the President said. At the same time, the President called on the people to follow the “example set forth by our brave forefathers who shed their blood to bring us to the light of democracy and freedom.” "In our fight against the enemy, let us stand united and not be fooled by the divisive plots and devious propaganda of those who wish to bring us to perdition," the President said. "Let us not fail our heroes, let us not fail our country, let us not fail our people," she added. |
