Japan-affiliated
telco InfiniVAN’s Submarine Cable Network project with Globe and
Eastern Communications marks new milestone
![InfiniVAN Submarine Cable Network project](submarine-cable-network-project.jpg)
Press Release
September 22, 2022
QUEZON CITY –
Following the landmark Subic Cable Loading Event in July, InfiniVAN,
Inc. in a joint-build project with two other Philippine telcos,
completed the Siargao landing of a segment of the Philippine
Domestic Submarine Cable Network (PDSCN) in the Municipality of Dapa,
Siargao Island on September 22.
InfiniVAN, Inc., a
subsidiary of Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed IPS, Inc. (TSE: 4390) took
part in the ceremonial cable pulling event of fiber optic cables
that is part of the ongoing cable laying phase of PDSCN. Five (5) of
the 24 segments have already been completed to date.
The cable-pulling ceremony
was witnessed by Dapa Mayor Elizabeth T. Matugas, Vice Mayor Gerry
Abejo and municipal officials along with representatives from
InfiniVAN, Inc., Globe Telecom, and Eastern Communications. Once
completed, the $150-million joint project that spans around 2,500 km
will provide ultra-fast and reliable connectivity across the
country.
InfiniVAN, Inc. Chief
Technology Officer Alberto “Abet” Espedido said that aside from
connecting major islands in the country, the project is designed to
bring connectivity to tourist destination islands to further boost
tourism and other industries in those places.
“We see this as an
opportunity to fulfill our objective of providing connectivity to
far flung areas. We hope that the project does not only provide good
communications infrastructure to Siargao but also help pump-prime
the island’s economy,” he said.
Espedido shared that the
fiber optic cable technology used in the country’s biggest and
longest submarine cable installation is “future-proof.” This means
unrepeatered 96-core fiber cables used in the project can handle
large data throughputs that can be further expanded through advances
in terminal equipment over the next 20 to 25 years.
This InfiniVAN-initiated
submarine cable project is a cost-effective solution to building a
massive and extensive transmission network through a joint-build
arrangement with Globe, the Philippines’ leading digital solutions
platform and Eastern Communications, premier telecommunications and
ICT solutions provider.
“We consider it an
achievement, as a new entrant in the market, to be working with
well-established partners on this project that will really make a
difference in the next few years. It is gratifying to have so-called
industry competitors join hands to provide a very precious resource
to our countrymen and the country as a whole, in a most unselfish
manner,” Espedido added.
The Express and Western
routes connecting Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao will be ready by
December this year and the remaining Eastern routes will be
completed by April 2023.
Global leaders in
public and private sectors call for united voice for peace as an
institution
![Chairman Man-hee Lee of HWPL](hwpl-chairman.jpg)
Press Release
September 20, 2022
MANILA – The 8th
Anniversary of the September 18th HWPL World Peace Summit was
virtually held last Sunday with the theme of ‘Peace as an
Institution: A Foundation for Sustainable Development’. This event
was participated by peace advocates across the world in 146
countries including USA, Germany, South Africa, Australia,
Philippines, South Korea with 5,000 participants, reaffirming the
importance of the sustainable development guaranteed by
institutionalizing peace while the global community has yet to
overcome the COVID-19 pandemic and faces new threats caused by the
Russian-Ukraine conflict.
Since September 18th in
2014 when the peace summit was held for the first time, Heavenly
Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light (HWPL), an international
peace NGO under the UN ECOSOC, has called for solidarity for
peacebuilding at the global level through collective actions with
various actors including heads of state, ministers, law makers,
religious leaders, educators, youth and women leaders, and
reporters. This annual summit shares peace activities and
achievements in cooperation with governments and civil society
around the world.
From the Philippines,
Senator Risa Hontiveros delivered a congratulatory message, “I thank
the HWPL for living and breathing peace, not only in your programs
to stop conflict, but also in your drive to institutionalize it into
our laws, our policies and our cultures. As a long time peace
advocate myself, I am one with you in your commitment to active
non-violence in all the work that we do and in all the roles that we
play in our lives.”
“While human dignity is
besieged by disease, war, climate change and poverty, we will
overcome these challenges, as ‘WE are ONE!’ with HWPL in supporting
projects that improve human rights and lay the foundation for
livelihood with human dignity,” said Chief Justice Alexander G.
Gesmundo in his congratulatory letter.
Regarding the cause of
peacebuilding at the global level, Chairman Man-hee Lee of HWPL
said, “The global village has suffered from the unexpected COVID-19
that has hit every country. People are not alone in the midst of
difficulties. We live in the same global village, and we are
neighbors and families. Each one of us is obliged to make our world
a better place to live. And shouldn't we pass on our good world to
our descendants?”
Recognizing the crucial
“role of parliaments in building peace and preventing conflict”, H.E.
Marinus Bee, the chairperson of the National Assembly of Suriname,
expressed his willingness to collaborate with HWPL in establishing
peace at the legislative level.
Octavia Alfred, Minister
for Education, Human Resource Planning, Vocational Training and
Nation Excellence of Dominica, said that HWPL’s peace education was
introduced to the national school curriculum in Dominica as it was
“integrated into Social Studies, and also as a stand-alone.” She
added that the HWPL peace curriculum is helpful “in addressing the
challenges of not just students, but even what they take home to
their friends and their parents, and also our teachers.”
Prabhu Mahendra Das, the
Temple President of Sri Sri Radha Madhava Mandir of the Philippines,
presented an institutional approach to interreligious dialogue in
terms of the role of religion in contributing to peace. He suggested
that regularizing international exchanges and programs to prevent
conflicts based on religious misunderstanding can be a starting
point for a foundation of peace.
Street food
vendor in Southern Leyte thrives through DOLE’s livelihood program
By
NORMA RAE S. COSTIMIANO
September 19, 2022
TACLOBAN CITY – The
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) through its DOLE
Integrated Livelihood Program (DILP) has steadfastly provided
livelihood to the needy and deserving informal workers throughout
the years.
Among the many
beneficiaries of the program is Melfo O. Bitor, a 28-year-old former
saleslady from Sogod, Southern Leyte, who tried her luck selling
fishball and kikiam with a capital of only P150.00.
In February 2021, Melfo
received from DOLE Regional Office No. 8 through the Southern Leyte
Field Office (SLFO) a livelihood starter kit for her street food
business worth P12,310.00.
Armed with gratitude and
determination, Melfo strived to manage her business well and
eventually gained success. The assistance from DOLE paved the way
for the living condition of her family to improve, earning a net
income of P2,500.00 per day.
From the income she earned
from one vending cart situated at the Sogod Terminal, Melfo was able
to buy another food cart which she placed beside a department store
in Sogod.
As life isn’t always
perfect, Melfo and her family encountered so many challenges along
the way. Her husband was hospitalized due to COVID, and their house
sustained heavy damages because of the typhoon Odette that struck
the province of Southern Leyte last December 2021. These exhausted
her savings but Melfo did not lose sight of her goal and managed to
rise above the problems.
Presently, Melfo opened
her third street food branch fronting another department store in
Sogod, this time, not only a food cart but a snack house where
customers can dine-in and enjoy their favorite street food.
From fishball and kikiam,
Melfo now offers a variety of snacks such as potato fries, kwek-kwek,
siomai and some refreshments. Her small-scale business is now a
sought-after street food in their place.
Looking back on how she
started, Melfo couldn’t help but shed tears of joy.
“Hindi ko po inakala na
magiging ganito kami. Ang hirap talaga nung una, dahil maliit lang
ang kita naming mag-asawa. Yung bahay namin noon halos
napagkakamalan po na bahay ng baboy. Pero dahil po sa tulong ng
DOLE, nag-iba at gumaan ang buhay namin. Natutugunan na namin ang
aming mga pangangailangan at nakakatulong pa kami sa iba”, Melfo
said.
Melfo’s successful
livelihood project is just one of the many testimonies that DOLE’s
livelihood program is indeed instrumental in improving the lives of
the workers that the department ought to serve.
(with a report from
DOLE-SLFO)
DE Briones to
contractors: Finish prior year projects until Dec. 31, 2022
![Ferdinand A Briones](bdeo-briones.jpg)
By
DPWH-Biliran
September 16, 2022
NAVAL, Biliran – District
Engineer Ferdinand A. Briones sets deadline to contractors with
project implementation from year 2021 and below.
During the contractors’ meeting held at DPWH Biliran District
Engineering Office (DEO) on September 01, 2022, DE Briones orders
contractors to finish its Prior Year (PY) projects until December
31, 2022 to avoid reversion of funds per Executive Order (E.O) No.
91.
“Those 2021 projects down to the PY projects, ang reversion ng pera
is hanggang December 31, 2022 nalang, kaya bilis-bilisan ninyo dahil
ang pera ay hindi mag-aantay sa projects,” said DE Briones.
DE Briones explained that under E.O. No. 91 or the adoption of the
cash-based budgeting system, contracts intended to be implemented
for the fiscal year should be fully delivered by the end of the
fiscal year.
“We still have PY projects that are still on-going right now,
although we encountered problems and consequences in the
implementation such as Right-Of-Way (ROW), project not feasible and
doable but this should not be an excuse para ihinto ang project,”
said DE Briones.
As of August 26, 2022, BDEO has still an unpaid balance of P462.97-M
for a total of 77 on-going projects implemented from 2017 to 2021.
According to DE Briones, unpaid balances are not just because of the
unfinished projects but also because of the contractors’ failure to
process billing due to lack of documents, even though the projects
are completed.
“Pag’ binalik ang pera, wala ng pera yan, pag walang pera hindi nyo’
na makukuha, although may ginagawang trabaho wala ng pambayad,” said
DE Briones.
DE Briones also emphasized that projects completed within the fiscal
year has still an Extended Payment Period (EPP) of three months
following the end of the fiscal year.
The District Engineer instructed the contractors to process the
required documents and to fast-track the implementation of their PY
projects in order to finish the projects on the allowable time.
“Whether you like it or not, you need to finish PY projects until
December 31, 2022,” said DE Briones to the contractors.
PH human rights
groups submit alternative human rights report to UN treaty body
By
KARAPATAN
September 14, 2022
QUEZON CITY – A
decade since the United Nations Human Rights Committee conducted a
review on the Philippine government’s compliance to the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the
State party will undergo a fifth review before the UN treaty body
this coming October 2022, with non-governmental organizations
providing alternative submissions to the government report.
Human rights group
Karapatan and Tanggol Bayi, an association of women human rights
defenders, submitted their 29-page joint alternative report on
September 12, covering human rights issues during the
administrations of Benigno Aquino III and Rodrigo Duterte, as well
as the first months of the Marcos Jr. administration.
In their report, they
stated that “the human rights situation in the country has spiraled
into a crisis,” as they documented and witnessed gross violations on
the right to life and civil liberties, the deeper and pervasive
climate of impunity and the dire lack of effective domestic
mechanisms for redress and accountability, closing civic and
democratic spaces, and unmet obligations to core international human
rights instruments, including the ICCPR.
They cited the continuing
impunity since the Marcos Sr. regime, with the dictator and his
family as well as cohorts yet to be made fully accountable for their
acts of gross human rights violations and massive corruption during
martial law, impeding efforts towards truth and justice.
“Marcos Jr.’s recent
defense of his dictator-father’s martial law glosses over their
family’s rapacious intent to monopolize political power and prolong
their rule by suppressing political dissent and pocketing billions
from the nation’s coffers. Clearly, Marcos Jr.’s presidency seeks to
erase all the crimes of the Marcoses against the Filipino people, to
enable them to keep their massive loot from public funds, and to
further their political ambitions,” said Karapatan Secretary General
Cristina Palabay, reacting to Marcos Jr.’s recent interview
defending his father’s imposition of martial law.
Karapatan added that
“Marcos Jr. continues the draconian and repressive policies of the
Duterte administration, wielding and foisting the anti-terror law
and other repressive policies against those who uphold and defend
human and people’s rights.”
“Marcos Jr. is not intent
on immediately prosecuting those involved in the gross human rights
violations during the Duterte administration and with domestic
remedies remaining largely ineffective in pursuing accountability,
the climate of impunity remains pervasive,” Palabay said.
Karapatan and Tanggol Bayi
highlighted “serious human rights violations” committed by State
actors including extrajudicial killings in the drug war and
counterinsurgency programs of the Philippine government; numerous
cases of illegal/arbitrary arrests and detention, threats including
red- and terrorist-tagging, and judicial harassment; infringement on
press freedom and freedom of expression, as well as freedom of
association and academic freedom; forced evacuations and bombings of
communities due to military operations; cruel and degrading
treatment of prisoners including political prisoners; gendered
attacks against women and LGBTQ human rights defenders, among
others.
“There is an even more
urgent need for the international community and the UN human rights
mechanisms to undertake decisive steps for an independent
investigation on these concerns and to continue to monitor and
report on the human rights situation in the Philippines. We urge the
members of the UN Human Rights Committee to comprehensively evaluate
how the ICCPR has been grossly violated by the Philippine government
through the many years after the last review,” Palabay said.
The groups are also set to
participate in the 51st session of the UN Human Rights Council and
the UN Universal Periodic Review, with the Philippines under
scrutiny in the next two months by the UN mechanisms.
Inflation rate in
Eastern Visayas goes 7.2 percent in August 2022
Press Release
September 8, 2022
TACLOBAN CITY – The
Inflation Rate (IR) in Eastern Visayas decreased to 7.2 percent in
August 2022, after five (5) consecutive months of acceleration. The
regional IR was higher than the 6.3 percent national IR in August
2022. With this month’s IR, the region’s average IR from January to
August 2022 stood at 6.2 percent. In August 2021, the regional IR
was lower at 4.5 percent (Figure 1).
![Inflation Rate of eastern visayas](inflation-fig1.gif)
The slowdown in the
regional IR in August 2022 was primarily due to the lower annual
increment recorded in the index for food and non-alcoholic beverages
at 7.5 percent, from 8.0 percent in the previous month. This was
followed by transport index whose double-digit IR declined to 13.5
percent in August 2022, from 16.1 percent in July 2022.
On the other hand, IRs
were higher for the following commodity groups during the month:
a. Alcoholic beverages and
tobacco, 7.0 percent;
b. Clothing and footwear,
1.5 percent;
c. Housing, water,
electricity, gas, and other fuels, 9.9 percent;
d. Furnishings, household
equipment, and routine household maintenance, 1.7 percent;
e. Health, 16 percent;
f. Information and
communication, 0.8 percent;
g. Recreation, sport, and
culture, 1.0 percent;
h. Education services, 1.1
percent;
i. Restaurants and
accommodation services, 5.3 percent; and
j. Personal care, and
miscellaneous goods and services, 2.2 percent
Meanwhile, the financial
services commodity group continued to registered zero percent annual
growth.
IR for food index slid to
7.8 percent during the month, from 8.5 percent in July 2022. IR for
food in August 2021 was posted at 5.7 percent.
By food group, the
decrease in the IRs for fish and other seafood at 4.8 percent;
vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas, and pulses at 3.1
percent; and rice at 2.3 percent contributed largely to the
deceleration of the food index during the month. Moreover, IRs
slowed down in the indices for fruits and nuts at 7.5 percent; and
meat and other parts of slaughtered animals at 23.9 percent.
On the other hand, the
following food groups exhibited higher IRs during the month:
a. Corn, 5.5 percent;
b. Flour, bread and other
bakery products, pasta products, and other cereals, 9.6 percent;
c. Milk, other dairy
products, and eggs, 5.0 percent
d. Oils and fats, 10.4
percent;
e. Sugar, confectionery,
and desserts, 20.1 percent; and
f. Ready-made food and
other food products not elsewhere classified, 3.6 percent;
Inflation Rate by Region
Compared with their
respective previous month’s IRs, six (6) regions exhibited lower
inflation in August 2022, nine (9) regions had higher inflation
rates, and two (2) regions retained their previous month’s inflation
rate. Among the regions, Eastern Visayas’ IR at 7.2 percent ranked
fifth highest during the month. Zamboanga Peninsula registered the
highest IR at 9.1 percent, followed by Davao Region and Caraga
Region at 8.9 percent and 7.5 percent, respectively. On the other
hand, BARMM remained as the region with the lowest recorded IR at
4.9 percent in August 2022 (Figure 2).
![Inflation Rate by Region](inflation-fig2.gif)
Inflation Rate by Province
Relative to their IRs in
July 2022, Leyte, Northern Samar, and Southern Leyte recorded lower
IRs in August 2022. On the other hand, increased IRs were observed
in Biliran, Eastern Samar, and Samar. Among the provinces, Southern
Leyte posted the highest IR at 9.6 percent in August 2022. Northern
Samar’s IR came next at 9.3 percent, followed by Biliran at 7.9
percent; Eastern Samar at 7.2 percent; and Samar at 6.8 percent. The
lowest IR was noted in Leyte at 6.7 percent (Table 1).
![Inflation Rate by province](inflation-table1.gif)
Meanwhile, IR for Tacloban
City, the lone Highly Urbanized City (HUC) in the region, was
recorded at 4.2 percent in August 2022, lower than its 5.2 percent
IR last month.
DTI, government
agencies and state universities, sign MOA for the creation of the
Regional Inclusive Innovation Center in EV
![DTI Regional Inclusive Innovation Centers](dti-RICC.jpg)
By
DTI-Regional Operations
Group
September 8, 2022
MAKATI CITY – DTI,
government agencies, and state universities, sign the Memorandum of
Agreement for the creation of the Regional Inclusive Innovation
Center (RIIC) in Region 8 on September 1, 2022.
The Regional Inclusive Innovation Centers (RIICs) are virtual of
physical platforms for collaborative programs purposively to
generate products, process or service innovation that are deemed
important to the goal of inclusive growth and development of the
respective regions.
Collaborations are expressed through government-academe-industry
partnerships, access to shared service facilities such as R&D
laboratories, co-working spaces, fabrication laboratories, and in
the case of regional startups, access to capital and investments.
Prior to the MOA signing, an overview of DTI’s programs geared
toward a more innovative Philippines and the RIIC was thoroughly
discussed by DTI Competitiveness and Innovation Group Undersecretary
Rafaelita Aldaba.
She zoomed in to the current industry and GDP situation of Region 8
and identified industry opportunities that can help the economic
development of the region.
This was backed up by the presentation of DTI Samar Provincial
Director Meilou C. Macabare about the high value coconut products
which micro and small entrepreneurs in the region are producing. DTI
eyes this potential industry to be a priority for the innovative
initiatives through the RIIC. This was supported by all the
provincial directors of DTI.
Present during this MOA Signing were heads of agencies and
presidents and executives of state universities – RD Celerina T.
Bato of DTI; RD Ernesto Granada and PD Glen Ocaña of DOST; RD
Meylene Rosales of NEDA; RD Felix Tabanao, Jr. of DICT; Mr. Erwin
Abonales of PCA; President of EVSU Dr. Dennis de Paz; Vice President
of SLSU Ms. Francis Ann R. Sy; Dir. Marclin G. Aguilar of BPSU; and
Dir. Vivian Moya of SSU Main.
It was also an opportune time for the Philippine-American Academy of
Science and Engineering (PAASE) to discuss innovative ideas and
social innovation with the partners. Present were Dr. Mariano R. Sto.
Domingo, Dr. Joel Cuelo and Dr. Alvin B. Culaba.
Before the meeting ends, a brief tentative action plan was discussed
by DTI ARD Badette Corsiga to mobilize and facilitate the RIIC to be
active.
Peace documentary
on Mindanao premieres in Davao City
![Peace documentary on Mindanao](peace-documentary.jpg)
Press Release
September 7, 2022
MANILA – In
celebration of the National Peace Consciousness Month, a peace
documentary titled “Great Legacy” premiered in a cinema in Davao
City on the evening of September 6, 2022. Around 500 distinguished
guests from the government, education sector, media, as well as
civic society leaders, religious leaders and peace advocates from
Mindanao have attended.
The documentary was
produced by SMV Media Group, a broadcast company based in Seoul,
South Korea, in collaboration with Heavenly Culture, World Peace,
Restoration of Light (HWPL), an international non-profit
organization advocating for global peace and cessation of war. The
film showcased the groups’ successful peace movement in Mindanao
which contributed to the peace process in the region.
Davao City Mayor Baste
Duterte congratulated and commended HWPL and SMV on the screening
saying, "By showing people documentaries and films on peace, we may
encourage more to be one with us in our peacekeeping and
peacebuilding efforts for our communities."
HWPL’s peace movement in
the Philippines started when HWPL Chairman Lee Man-hee, a Korean war
veteran, visited Mindanao. He mediated a civilian peace agreement
signed by Archbishop Emeritus Fernando Capalla and then Maguindanao
Governor Esmael “Toto” G. Mangudadatu on January 14, 2014 in General
Santos City. Before the audience of 300 people including
politicians, university professors, religious leaders, and students,
the representatives promised to cooperate in ceasing the conflict
and building peace especially in the Mindanao region which has long
suffered the aftereffects of war.
This agreement became the
starting point of HWPL in raising public awareness about peace not
only in Mindanao but throughout the Philippines, based on the
universal principles of mutual understanding, respect, and harmony.
HWPL’s peace initiatives include law enactment for peace, interfaith
dialogues, peace education, and youth and women empowerment.
In the film, Martin Lee
Hojian, former chairperson of the UN Human Rights Commission of the
United Nations, Homoibi, highly praised HWPL Chairman Lee, who
intervened in the realization of peace in Mindanao as a third
person, and the Filipino people who had a keen passion for peace.
Also, Nabil Tirmage, Asia Pacific Broadcasting Development
Organization program manager, said that the civil peace agreement in
2014 is an ‘amazing case of realization of peace that the world
should study’.
Before the screening, a
press conference was held for Mr. John Rommel Garces, Chief Branch
Manager of HWPL Philippines, Ms. Hyun Sook Yoon, Chairwoman of the
International Women’s Peace Group (IWPG), and Ms. Sholai Lim, Vice
President for Mindanao of the Philippine Federation of Local
Councils of Women and Publicity Ambassador of IWPG.
IWPG, a partner
organization of HWPL, unveiled the first IWPG Peace Monument on the
grounds of Maragusan, Davao de Oro overlooking the sea of clouds on
September 6 morning. Their delegates from South Korea traveled to
the Philippines for the first IWPG Peace Tour from September 5-7.
CARD MBA opens
83rd provincial office in Zamboanga del Sur
![CARD MBA Zamboanga del Sur](card-mba-zamboanga.jpg)
The
83rd provincial office of CARD MBA opened in Zamboanga Del Sur
with Senior Operations Director Oliver M. Reyes; Deputy Director
for Operations Janicekith N. Navera, CARD SME Bank Area Manager
Joel Bermudez and CARD Inc. Regional Director Adonis Saromines,
CARD MBA coordinators, CARD MRI members and staff. |
Press Release
August 31, 2022
SAN PABLO CITY – To
further expand its mission of providing microinsurance to its
members, the CARD Mutual Benefit Association (CARD MBA) successfully
opened its 83rd branch located in Pacigea Sites, Nazareth,
Buenavista, Pagadian City, Zamboanga Del Sur on August 8, 2022.
The event was graced by
CARD MBA Senior Operations Director Oliver M. Reyes, CARD MBA Deputy
Director for Operations Janicekith N. Navera, CARD SME Bank Area
Manager Joel Bermudez and CARD Inc. Regional Director Adonis
Saromines, CARD MBA coordinators, CARD Mutually Reinforcing
Institutions (CARD MRI) clients and staff.
"CARD MBA strives to
provide excellent levels of service through recognizing and meeting
the specific insurance needs of client-members," said CARD MBA CEO
Jocelyn D. Dequito. “It is our contribution to CARD MRI’s goal of
poverty eradication to provide insurance even to the hardest to
reach communities.”
To maintain a high level
of satisfaction, CARD MBA ensures that clients' microinsurance needs
are met from membership to retirement. In fact, the institution
provides microinsurance products to members of the association and
their families. This is comprised of Basic Life Insurance Program,
Retirement Fund (RF), Loan Redemption Fund (LRF) Plus, Golden Life
Insurance, and Family Security Fund.
CARD MBA also offers
community development programs to support socioeconomically
challenged families and individuals of the community. This includes
mass weddings, immediate relief assistance to calamity-stricken
areas, and participation in CARD's other nation-building programs in
health, livelihood, and education.
With a total insured
individual of 23,037,454 as of June 30, 2022, CARD MBA will continue
uplift the lives of the marginalized sectors in the country.