Bongbong Marcos vows to modernize, improve PH transportation system

by Daphne Galvez Inquirer.net

MANILA — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Friday, March 3 vowed that his administration would continue to modernize and improve the country’s transportation system.

“I assure the Filipino people that the government will strive to modernize and improve the country’s transportation system. This will be one of the cornerstones of our progress as we move full speed ahead into a brighter tomorrow,” the president said after witnessing the signing of the contract for the electromechanical systems and track works for the North-South Commuter Railway project (CP-NS01).

Marcos described the contract signing for the project as a “milestone” towards the completion of the 147-kilometer North-South Commuter Railway, which he said, will reduce travel time between Clark International Airport and Calamba City, Laguna.

AAPI community leaders are concerned that the tense U.S.-China relationship, which has become more fraught in recent weeks over accusations of Chinese spying, has spurred on a fresh wave of xenophobia as high-ranking Asian American politicians become the targets of Republican attacks.

Rep. Judy Chu, the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress, is accused of being “unpatriotic,” by Rep. Lance Gooden, R-Texas, because of her support for Dominic Ng, President Joe Biden’s appointee as Chair of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Ng is accused of having ties to the Chinese Communist Party by Gooden and five other House Republicans.

Chu, a Democrat from California, is the chairwoman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), and perhaps one of the most well-known AAPI members of the House. A second generation Californian and native of Los Angeles, she is also the daughter

by Rosette aDel Philstar.com

MANILA — Security screening officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport will soon no longer be allowed to wear uniforms or jackets that have pockets in them to prevent more incidents of theft at the NAIA, the country’s premier gateway.

Cesar Chiong, Manila International Airport Authority general manager, said the MIAA also prohibited the security screening personnel or SSO to interact directly with passengers or bring passenger bags into their areas of assignment.

These measures are among the MIAA service standard policies for employees of government and non-government agencies that Chiong ordered “to be implemented strictly” at the NAIA following reports that a Thai and a Chinese tourist were robbed of cash and watch, respectively. Chiong stressed in a statement that incidents like these “negate all efforts of the MIAA to improve the image of NAIA.”

“We strongly condemn such unscrupulous, illicit and selfish acts. Theft violates the trust and integrity required of public servants, and has serious negative consequences for the airport, its stakeholders, and the country as a whole,” his statement read in part.

“We thank the Airport Police