News Briefs: Robredo backs bills for the elderly
Leni Robredo watches as the elderly perform a dance number
for her during the Elderly FilipinoWeek. —NIÑO JESUS ORBETA
Leni backs bills for the elderly
Vice President Leni Robredo backed Thursday the passage of two pending bills in Congress that were expected to provide protection to elderly Filipinos, who comprise 6.8 percent of the population. Robredo said the Elder Abuse and the Social Security Pension hike bills were designed to protect the elderly from neglect and abuse while also increasing their monthly pension to P2,000 each. —Nikko Dizon
Labor group not impressed
Not much has actually been done to curb contractualization in the Duterte administration’s first 100 days, per militant labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno. Secretary Silvestre Bello III claimed Tuesday the Department of Labor and Employment had suspended several manpower agencies supplying “endo” workers and over 10,000 had been regularized by 195 firms. KMU chair Elmer Labog said in a statement: “Its (Dole) efforts do not directly respond to demands for regular jobs. There must be an absolute ban on contractualization.” —Tina G. Santos
Soon: No more flight diversions
Weather-related flight diversions at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) may soon be a rarity after a P7-million upgrade of its Instrument Landing System (ILS) was started on Thursday under the supervision of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap). Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) General Manager Ed Monreal said the upgrade of the ILS with new parts would “minimize, if not eliminate, necessary diversions due to inclement weather.” Caap’s Michael Rizada, in charge of facilities at the Manila air traffic control tower, said the upgrade would “further make traffic management at Naia more efficient,” adding the installation may be completed by week’s end. He said that while installation was easy, calibration will take a few days and it will undergo a final test “to validate the accuracy of the signal.” —Jeannette I. Andrade
Rehab an option in drug war—Judy
There’s another side to the Duterte administration’s war against illegal drugs—nurturing rehabilitation and reintegration into society of recovering drug dependents. Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo made this statement at a gathering of women religious leaders in Manila on Thursday, attended by the Catholics for Reproductive Health, the UP Institute of Islamic Studies and the UP Holy Cross Parish. Taguiwalo said the three pillars of rehabilitation are: center-based, by the health department; community-based, by the local government, with Church-based groups; and reintegration and rehabilitation, by the social welfare department. —Julie M. Aurelio
Take risks, journalists urged
Take risks, journalists urged
A Roman Catholic prelate has echoed the call of Pope Francis for Philippine journalists to take more risks in telling the truth. Legazpi Bishop Joel Baylon expressed sentiments similar to the pontiff’s prayer intention for this month, which focuses on members of the media. “I hope that our news people will be more willing to take the risk so that the truth may be told, so that what they write or report may prevail over those who try to tell lies and half-truths,” Baylon said in a statement on the website of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. —Julie M. Aurelio
Let me join Digong trip, solon asks court
Valenzuela City 1st District Rep. Weslie Gatchalian has asked the Sandiganbayan to allow him to join President Rodrigo Duterte on an official trip to China. In a two-page urgent motion for permission to travel before the anti-graft court’s Fourth Division, Gatchalian said House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez authorized him to go as a delegate in the Bases Conversion Development Authority’s trade mission from Oct. 18 to 22 “assist and advice the President during his discussions with Chinese delegates.” Gatchalian is currently facing graft charges over the Local Water Utilities Administration’s acquisition of an insolvent thrift bank in 2009. —Vince F. Nonato
Want drug test? Go to PNP lab
Celebrities who want to undergo drug tests should do so before police officials, according to the National Capital Region Police Office. “They can’t do it on their own. If they will conduct [drug tests], it should be in front of crime laboratory personnel or even in front of the chief of the Philippine National Police,” NCRPO director Chief Supt. Oscar Albayalde told reporters in an interview in Camp Crame the other day. Drug tests conducted through private clinics or not in front of police officials will not be accepted by the police and cannot be used to clear a celebrity suspected of using drugs, he said. —Jerome Aning
Gov’t lending up to P5 million to OFWs
Good news for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). You and your families can now avail of a livelihood loan of P100,000 to P5 million. This was announced by Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III following the signing of memorandum of agreement on the OFW-Enterprise Development and Loan Program (OFW-EDLP) between the Department of Labor and Employment–Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). The OFW-EDLP, implemented in partnership with Land Bank of the Philippines and Development Bank of the Philippines, will help OFWs and their families set up businesses. Qualified individuals can borrow from P100,000 up to a maximum of P2 million. Group borrowers can obtain a maximum of P5 million. —Tina G. Santos
