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Duterte vows to become respectable national leader by ROBERTZON
RAMIREZ
Philstar.com
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1st PH-made satellite set to go into space by JOVIC
YEE Inquirer.net
MANILA—It’s official. The Philippines is launching its first Filipino-made satellite in space in April this year. Young Filipino scientists and officials of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), led by Undersecretary for Scientific and Technological Services Rowena Cristina Guevara, turned over on Wednesday, Jan. 13 the Philippine Scientific Earth Observation Micro-satellite (Phil-Microsat) to their counterparts at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) in Tsukuba City. Phil-Microsat, nicknamed “Diwata,” is the “first Filipino-made” and co-developed micro-satellite, which will provide real-time images that will help improve government’s response to natural calamities and the monitoring of the country’s agricultural, fisheries and forest resources, according to Carlos Primo David, executive director of the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD). While the Philippines had in the past two communication satellites in orbit—Agila-1 and Agila-2— these were both privately owned and bought abroad. Interestingly, this development in the Philippines’ space history comes almost 47 years since the country first won the Miss Universe crown and man made its giant leap in space exploration with the landing of the Apollo II mission in the moon. More than four decades later, the Philippines has clinched for the third time the Miss Universe crown and is now set to actively join space exploration.
Following the turnover, Japanese experts conducted final tests on the micro-satellite’s space-worthiness before sending it over to the US’ National Aeronautics and Space Administration, David has explained. NASA would then hand the device over to SpaceX, which would launch sometime in April a rocket carrying the micro-satellite to the International Space Station (ISS), David said. The PCIEERD chief said that upon the entry of the 50-kilo “balikbayan-box-sized” micro-satellite into the ISS, an astronaut would conduct a final check on the device before releasing it into orbit for at least 18 months. Diwata would be the first of two micro-satellites to be launched into space until next year. It is part of a three-year P840.82-million program, which would also see the construction of a ground receiving station in Subic, Zambales, called the Philippine Earth Data Resources Observation (PEDRO). PEDRO is tasked to receive and store data sent by Diwata, which is expected to take a daily average of 3,600 high-resolution images using its four cameras. Joel Marciano Jr., Phil-Microsat program head, earlier said that the Diwata has been equipped with a high-precision telescope that could “determine the extent of damage from disasters,” like an onslaught of a storm, as well as “monitor cultural and natural heritage sites,” like the Mayon Volcano in Albay province. He added that Diwata has been fitted with a space-borne multispectral imager with liquid crystal tunable filter that could “monitor changes in vegetation and ocean
productivity,” a wide-field camera that could observe “cloud patterns and weather disturbance,” and a middle field camera, “an engineering payload that would be used to assist in determining the location of each image captured by the other optics.” Science Secretary Mario Montejo said on Tuesday, Jan. 12 that because of Diwata’s capabilities, the government could have better disaster response mechanisms because of the availability of realtime data. He added that the cost of this project was just a “small investment,” noting that in 2013 when Supertyphoon “Yolanda” devastated Eastern Visayas, the government had to pay around P56 million for a single satellite image showing areas affected by the typhoon. When asked why the government took so long to invest in a space program, David said that it could be because previous administrations “didn’t see its practical purpose at that point in time.” He noted that while government could indeed buy particular services from other countries, “inherent advantages” to developing Philippine technologies prompted the creation of Phil-Microsat. Once Diwata becomes operational, not only will it aid government in disaster events and monitoring resources, it will also capture the country’s natural wonders, which will be uploaded every day by the DOST on its website, according to David. This endeavor, Montejo said, has shown that “sky’s the limit” for our Filipino scientists and innovators, and that “we can turn our dreams into reality.”
MANILA—Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has vowed to transform himself from a local executive to a respectable national leader if elected president in May. “The clock is ticking. The transformation must begin now. It is time to decide if you and I will make the sacrifice needed and transform ourselves so we will be worthy of our country. The transformation must start with me. From a local leader, I have to become a national leader worthy of your respect and trust,” he said in a recent interview aired on dzRJ 810 AM. Duterte, standard-bearer of Partido Demokratiko PilipinoLakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), also promised to be a Philippine president that the world would respect as the country is a member of the community of nations. Duterte is known for being tough-talking. He drew flak for bragging that he is a womanizer and that he killed criminals. He was also lambasted for cursing at Pope Francis during the proc-
lamation rally of PDP-Laban where he complained about the traffic jams caused by the papal visit in January last year. Vice presidential candidate Sen. Antonio Trillanes took a swipe at Duterte in a television interview, saying that the mayor’s disciplinary method “may have worked in Davao but it’s definitely not going to work in the national scale.” “You don’t run the country like that. There should be a vision, a program of action that you would actually have to enumerate,” Trillanes added. But Duterte asked the people if they would still want another six-year presidential term full of criminals, drug addicts, and continuing poverty and corruption. “Or do we once and for all fix our country so our coming generations will have a future?” he added. Duterte stressed that the 2016 presidential elections are the best opportunity for the people to unite in seeking reforms the country badly needs. Duterte and his vice presidential running mate Sen. Alan
Peter Cayetano started their nationwide campaign tour last week. Duterte said among his plans for the Philippines is for it to become a drug-free country with less crime incidents. He vowed to reduce the cost of food by 50 percent by getting rid of unscrupulous middlemen and loan sharks, and by mustering government’s resource to build infrastructure for the delivery of food to lessen spoilage. He promised to create employment by putting up a steel industry “that will spawn factories and create jobs.” He also vowed to build more classrooms, raise the salary of teachers, and double the shifts of classes with the use of largescreen television sets. “Government media and our schools must also teach values of honesty, hard work, respect for the law and above all dignity and pride as Filipinos,” he said. “I have done many of these in Davao even with existing limitations of our government structures. With your help, we can do it nationwide,” he added.