011124 - Las Vegas Edition

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LAS VEGAS

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JANUARY 11-17, 2024

T HE F ILIPINO A MERICAN C OMMUNITY N EWSPAPER

Volume 35 - No. 2 • 12 Pages

2770 S. Maryland Pkwy., Suite 201 Las Vegas, NV 89109 Tel: (702) 792-6678 • Fax: (702) 792-6879

Also published in LOS ANGELES, ORANGE COUNTY/INLAND EMPIRE, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO, NEW YORK/NEW JERSEY

Marcos to see Duterte ‘if he wants a meeting’ DATELINE USA FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

There’s a new COVID-19 variant and cases are ticking up IT’S winter, that cozy season that brings crackling fireplaces, indoor gatherings — and a wave of respiratory illness. Nearly four years since the pandemic emerged, people are growing weary of dealing with it, but the virus is not done with us. Nationally, a sharp uptick in emergency room visits and hospitalizations for COVID-19, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, began in midDecember and appears to be gaining momentum. What’s circulating now? The COVID virus is continually changing, and a recent version is rapidly climbing the charts. Even though it appeared only in September, the variant known as JN.1, a descendant of omicron, is rapidly spreading, representing between 39% to half of the cases, according to pre-holiday stats from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  PAGE 3

by GERMELINA LACORTE, JEROME ANING Inquirer.net

MANILA — Malacañang on Sunday, January 7 said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is open to a meeting with his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte after the former president said on Saturday, January 6 that he wanted to talk to Marcos regarding embattled network Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI). “President Marcos is always available to President Duterte. The president will contact him now to ask if he wants a meeting,” Communications Secretary

Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil told reporters in a message on Viber. Duterte cohosted on SMNI “Gikan sa Masa, Para sa Masa” (From the Masses, for the Masses), one of two programs that the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board suspended on Dec. 18, in part due to Duterte’s earlier remarks against ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro, which prompted the lawmaker to sue the former president for grave threat. The next day, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) ordered the network’s operations

Pres. Marcos: Discover strength, hope on Black Nazarene feast by GAEA KATREENA CABICO Philstar.com

You can now report scammers to FTC in Tagalog THE Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has a new strategy for battling fraud. its Language Access Initiative now provides interpreters who can take fraud reports and provide advice in many more languages than just English and Spanish. New language choices available include Tagalog. At a recent press briefing the federal agency hosted with Ethnic Media Services – simultaneously translated into Spanish, Korean and Mandarin – two FTC officials and a lawyer/journalist described how the new multilingual services work and some of the ways they’re expected to help protect consumers. “We’ve long had the ability to hear from people in English and Spanish,” said Monica Vaca, deputy director in the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Getting reports from people in other languages has been a limitation for us.” Vaca emphasized the importance of people making those reports not just for their own sake but to help the FTC get the word out before more people are scammed. “We can only bring cases and do education about scams that we know about,” she said.  PAGE 2

APPEAL FOR CLEMENCY. Cesar and Celia Veloso (left and 2nd from left), parents of Mary Jane Veloso, and her children appeal to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Indonesian President Widodo for clemency, at Mendiola Bridge, Manila on Wednesday, Jan. 10. Mary Jane was arrested in Indonesia for drug trafficking in 2010 and was sentenced to death. PNA photo by Yancy Lim

Philstar.com

MANILA — Sen. Raffy Tulfo has expressed opposition to the government’s alleged plan to import modern jeepney units from China to replace the traditional jeepney vehicles even as modern jeepneys made by local manufacturers are more affordable — a move that he said “reeks of corruption.” Tulfo said that local jeepney manufacturers can produce modern vehicles at a lower price than the cost of importing Chinamade jeepneys, which are pegged at P2.6 to P2.9 million per unit.

MANILA — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. urged Catholic devotees to find strength and renewed hope during the festivities of the Feast of the Black Nazarene. In a message Monday, January 8 Marcos said the feast shows “the love and sacrifice of Jesus Christ who willingly offered Himself to make us whole once more.” “By working through our struggles and difficulties, we discover our inner strength and resolve, emerging from the pits of darkness and despair with a renewed sense of hope and purpose,” Marcos said. “With our faith guiding our every word and deed, I am certain that we will build a brighter future for our nation and create a world where love, kindness, and harmony reign supreme,” he added. This year’s Traslacion, or the grand procession of the revered statue of Jesus Christ, was expected to draw millions of Catholic devotees. Around 15,000 police officers were expected to secure the Traslacion on Tuesday, January 9. Marcos declared January 9 a special non-working day in the City of Manila to mark the observance of the feast. 

Recto in, Diokno out as Finance chief by KRISTINA MARALIT AND BERNADETTE E. TAMAYO ManilaTimes.net

MALACAÑANG on Thursday, January 11 confirmed that Rep. Ralph Recto will take his oath as secretary of the Department of Finance on Friday, January 12, 2024. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will also swear into office Frederick Go, his Special Assistant for Investment and Economic Affairs, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Cheloy Garafil said in a text message to reporters. Recto will replace Benjamin Diokno, who assumed the top Finance post in 2022. Recto's wife, former Batangas governor Vilma Santos-Recto, was the first to break the news in public. "Manunumpa na siya tomorrow, January 12,

bilang bagong (He will be sworn on January 12 as the new) Secretary of Finance under the administration of [President Marcos]. Kasi binigyan siya ng tiwala (He was given the trust) because he is such a good economist," she said. There had been rumors that Recto was moving up as Finance secretary since last year, after he accompanied the President to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit last November. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Albay 2nd District Rep. Jose Ma. Clemente "Joey" Salceda welcomed the appointment of Recto as Finance chief, noting that he  PAGE 2

Senator criticizes plan to import jeepneys from China by CRISTINA CHI

suspended, following a resolution by the House of Representatives recommending that action, citing SMNI’s alleged violations of the terms of its franchise. ‘I have not crucified him’ In his first press conference with Davao media on Saturday night, a recording of which was posted by some broadcasters online, Duterte said: “I do not want to control the president, but rather I’d like to talk to him directly why was it like that.” “Also, as far as I’m concerned, I have not crucified him, not even criticized him severely—maybe [I had]  PAGE 2

“Our waters in the West Philippine Sea are already being occupied by China. Will we let our roads be occupied by them?” Tulfo said in Filipino. Tulfo cited as an example the price points of vehicles made by local manufacturers Sarao and Francisco Motors, which he said make modern jeepneys that cost P900,000 to P985,000 a piece. The senator added that the government can save around P1.7 million per unit if they choose a local manufacturer instead of a Chinese company and that prioritizing Filipino vehicle makers would create thousands  PAGE 3

Traditional jeepneys at the FTI terminal in Taguig City.

Philstar.com photo

Malacañang file photo

Pulse Asia: Marcos’ approval rating jumps by 3%, VP Duterte gains 1% by JEAN MANGALUZ Inquirer.net

MANILA — The approval and trust ratings of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. bounced back in December 2023, according to a new Pulse Asia survey released on Monday, January 8. Marcos’ approval rating took a nosedive in September 2023, suffering a double-digit drop. His popularity rating was 80 percent in June 2023, dropping 15 points or 65 percent in September 2023. Now, the president’s rating increased by 3 points, currently standing at 68 percent. “The president and the vicepresident both have majority approval scores in every area,”

stated Pulse Asia. Meanwhile, the trust rating of the chief executive also increased by two points, from 71 percent in September 2023 to 73 percent December 2023. In June 2023, the president’s rating was at 85 percent. Vice President Sara Duterte’s approval rating also rose by one percent after a significant decline in September 2023. Duterte’s December 2023 approval rating was higher than Marcos’ at 74 percent. Her trust rating is also higher than the chief executive at 78 percent. The survey was held from December 3 to 7, 2023. It was participated by 1,200 respondents across the country. �


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