retirement

Philippines among safest countries in the world — Gallup poll

MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Philippines is considered as among the safest countries in the world where citizens feel safe and have confidence with the local police, according to the 2020 Global Law and Order survey by American analytics firm Gallup.

In the report based on a survey conducted in 2019, the Philippines is tied with Australia, New Zealand, Poland, and Serbia on 12th spot with a law and order index score of 84.

Out of the 144 countries, the Philippines is among the top 40 nations with the highest scores.

The researchers asked nearly 175,000 adults in 144 countries and areas with four questions to capture their sense of personal security and experiences with crime and law enforcement.

The questions asked are the following:

In the city or area where you live, do you have confidence in the local police force?

Do you feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area where you live?

Within the last 12 months, have you had money or property stolen from you or another household member?

Within the past 12 months, have you been assaulted or mugged?

Singapore and Turkmenistan topped the list with a law and order index score of 97. They are followed by China, Iceland, Kuwait, Norway, Austria, Switzerland, Uzbekistan, and the United Arab Emirates.

Afghanistan placed at the bottom of the ranking with a score of 43. Among the countries with the lowest scores are Gabon, Venezuela, Liberia, South Africa, Gambia, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Botswana, and Mexico.

Globally, almost seven in 10 people or 69% said in 2019 that they feel safe walking alone at night where they live and have confidence in their local police, Gallup said.

Around one in eight people or 12% said they had property stolen from them or another household member in the past year, while 6% said they were assaulted or mugged.

“These numbers remained largely unchanged from 2018,” Gallup said.

The survey results are based on telephone and face-to-face interviews with approximately 1,000 adults in each country, aged 15 and older, which were conducted throughout 2019 in 144 countries and areas.

For results based on the total sample of national adults, Gallup said the margin of sampling error ranged from ±2.1 percentage points to ±5.6 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.

All reported margins of sampling error include computed design effects for weighting, it added.

(MNS)

No timeline yet on possible PH-China joint oil exploration —DFA

MANILA (Mabuhay) — Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr. on Tuesday said Manila and Beijing are still discussing a possible joint oil and gas exploration in the West Philippine Sea.

Locsin said the two countries would need to identify a "specific project" first under the Philippine-China Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Oil and Gas Development (MOU). "For one year both sides exchanged impossible-to-reconcile positions. So I felt that what we need here is to try with a specific project, a project in the disputed area. With us it's not disputed, it's ours by Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Madrid, Spain last year, with discussions continuing from that point. He did not provide further details but said "every step of those talks" was cleared by members of the Cabinet and President Rodrigo Duterte. "What is important is the care with which we are working on the language, so that that language and what it translates to in real actions do not, in any way, constitute a surrender of our rights under the Arbitral Award and UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea)," he said. "China, I suppose, is doing

right but it's a Chinese claim," he said in an interview with CNN Philippines. "A specific project will then focus on how you’re actually gonna do it."

Locsin said a proposal was made during his meeting with Chinese State Councilor and the same thing because we're still talking and that's the situation now," he added.

Whatever the outcome, Locsin said these talks would provide a template that may serve as guidelines for future projects between the disputing parties.

“That template will govern how I, the DFA, will decide whether any specific project by other any department follows the law, the Constitution, and our rights under the arbitral award. I’m not gonna give in to anybody. I don’t care how influential they think they are,” he said.

The Philippine government recently lifted the moratorium on oil and gas exploration in the West Philippine Sea to strengthen the country’s energy security.

The resumption of petroleum activities covers the areas within Service Contract Nos. 59, 72, and 75 in the West Philippine Sea, which were suspended on the ground of force majeure due to the existing South China Sea dispute. Talks on oil and gas cooperation were halted due to the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak early this year.

In a Palace briefing last month, Philippine Ambassador to China Jose Santiago Sta. Romana said Manila and Beijing are trying to determine when the negotiations can resume safely amid the pandemic. (MNS)

SC approves magistrate’s early retirement

MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday confirmed the early retirement of one of its magistrates. "The Court approved the application for disability retirement of Justice Priscilla Baltazar-Padilla effective today, 3 November,” the SC Public Information Office said in a press statement.

No other details were provided by the court.

Baltazar-Padilla was appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte to the High Court last July, replacing Associate Justice Andres Reyes Jr., who retired in May.

Padilla joined the judiciary in 1996 as Presiding Judge of Branch 29 of the Metropolitan Trial Court of Manila.

She was promoted to Presiding Judge of the Regional Trial Court of Manila Branch 38 in 2000. In 2006, she was appointed Associate Justice of the Court of Appeals and held the position for 14 years until her appointment to the Supreme Court.

She graduated from the Lyceum of the Philippines in Intramuros, Manila, and placed 5th in the 1984 bar examinations.

She is Duterte's 14th appointee to the High Court and would have reached the mandatory retirement age of 70 in 2028. (MNS)

Pinoy repatriates reach 237,363 in October

MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) wrapped up its 8th month of coronavirus disease (Covid-19)-related repatriation efforts as it brought home a total of 37,095 overseas Filipinos (OFs) this October.

This, the DFA said, brings the total number of repatriated OFs to 237,363 since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Of the total, 77,326 OFs (32.58 percent) are sea-based while 160,037 (67.42 percent) are land-based.

The repatriates this October came from the following regions: --31,849 or 85.86 percent from the Middle East; --2,716 (7.32 percent) from Asia and the Pacific; --2,406 (6.49 percent) from Europe; --92 (0.25 percent) from Africa; and --32 (0.09 percent) from the Americas.

October’s repatriations were marked by several “firsts” — the mass repatriation of more than 500 Agrostudies students from Israel, the safe return of 92 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from Benghazi, Libya, and the first-ever repatriation by sea from Indonesia of 40 Filipino fishermen via the BRP Tubbataha.

The DFA also chartered three flights from Jeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia which flew home 920 OFs, including OFWs with chronic medical conditions.

It also facilitated several medical repatriations from Australia, Brazil, French Polynesia, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Norway, Oman, Spain, and the USA.

“As we sustain our repatriation efforts in the last two months of the year, the DFA remains fully committed to bringing home our kababayan, whatever challenges we may face,” Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Lou Arriola said.

The DFA expects to repatriate more than 107,000 Filipinos by year-end.

DICT backs NTC’s streamlining of fiber optic cable deployment permit process

MANILA (Mabuhay) — The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is backing the National Telecommunications Commission’s (NTC) initiative to streamline the permitting process for the installation of fiber optic cables.

The DICT said NTC is also requesting concerned government agencies to rationalize the permitting processes for fiber optic cables similar to Joint Memorandum Circular No.1 s. 2020, which streamlines the issuance of permits, licenses, and certificates for the construction of shared passive telecommunications tower infrastructure (PTTIs).

The move, it said, is aimed at facilitating a seamless integration of fiber optic cable and wireless technologies as both are critical components of the country’s broadband network.

“The DICT is currently fast tracking the implementation of the National Broadband Program – our Department’s initiative in building a government-owned broadband network for better, more affordable and more extensive Internet connectivity in the country. We welcome all initiatives that will complement the NBP, including efforts to improve ICT infrastructures in the private sector side,” said DICT Secretary Gregorio Honasan II.

In a letter addressed to DICT, Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), and the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA), NTC stated that the JMC signed in July this year has proven to be effective in facilitating the addition of required base towers in the Philippines leading to improvements in wireless coverage and technologies.

With this, the NTC also aims for a fast-tracked deployment of fiber optic networks, the fundamental telecommunication infostructure needed to address the country’s ICT needs along with addressing the wireless component of telecommunications.

As part of its efforts, NTC said it is presently coordinating with DPWH for possible amendments in Department Order No. 73 s. 2014 which provides for guidelines for right-ofway concerns in the deployment of fiber optic networks along national roads and bridges.

NTC is an attached agency of the DICT. (MNS)

Rice supply stable amid ‘Rolly’ damage to farmlands — DA

MANILA (Mabuhay) — Rice production in the country is "still enough" despite some farmlands destroyed due to the onslaught of typhoons Rolly and Quinta, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Tuesday.

“The total volume na tumama sa rice is 170,000 metric tons. If we compare it sa annual target na 20 million metric tons, this is less than 1 percent (The total volume of rice production that was hit by the typhoon is 170,000 metric tons. If we compare it to the 20 million metric tons annual target, that is only 1 percent),” DA director for field operations Roy Abaya said in a virtual briefing.

The combined amount of damage and losses from “Quinta” (PHP2.56 billion) and “Rolly” (PHP1.99 billion) is PHP4.56 billion.

The two weather disturbances affected 77,958 farmers and 115,148 hectares of agricultural areas in Regions 1, 2, 3, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, according to the DA bulletin as of noon of November 3.

The volume of production loss is at 262,539 metric tons.

The affected commodities include rice, corn, high-value crops, fisheries, livestock, irrigation, and agri-facilities.

In earlier reports, the DA said a total of 4,263 bags of rice issued by the National Food Authority (NFA) will be distributed to the provinces of Marinduque, Albay, Camarines Norte, Catanduanes, Sorsogon, and Cavite for relief operations.

A total of 133,326 bags of rice seeds, 17,545 bags of corn seeds, and 1,980 kilograms of assorted vegetables will also be given to affected farmers.

Around 10 million pieces of available tilapia and milkfish fingerlings, as well as fishing gears and paraphernalia, will also be distributed to fisherfolk in the affected areas.

Quick Response Fund amounting to PHP400 million was allocated for the rehabilitation of areas affected by “Rolly”.

On the other hand, the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Bicol said some 23,552 food packs worth PHP10.2 million and non-food items worth PHP26.4 million are distributed.

Loan programs and other cash assistance are also underway, the DA said. (MNS)

Inflation rate slightly up to 2.5% in October

MANILA (Mabuhay) — The country’s inflation rate increased slightly to 2.5 percent in October from the previous month’s 2.3 percent due mainly to higher food prices, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Thursday.

The average price increase of basic goods and services for the first 10 months of the year remained at 2.5 percent.

In a virtual press briefing, PSA Undersecretary and national statistician Dennis Mapa said the main drivers in the uptrend of inflation last month were food and non-alcoholic beverages, particularly meat and fish.

Mapa said the weighted average price of pork in the National Capital Region (NCR) reached PHP260 per kilo in October from PHP202 last year; while those in areas outside NCR (AONCR) increased to PHP208 per kilo from PHP186.

“The source of increase in prices is basically Luzon, particularly provinces that are near the NCR,” he added.

Mapa said the food and non-alcoholic beverages index, which rose by 2.1 percent and with a 33.2-percent share in the overall inflation, contributed mainly to the slight increase in prices in October.

He also attributed last month’s inflation to higher prices of restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services, particularly increases in costs of barbershop and education services.

He added that transport, with 7.9-percent inflation and 26.2-percent share in overall inflation in October, likewise pushed prices higher.

Mapa particularly cited tricycle fare in AONCR where the minimum charge per passenger averaged PHP14.25 from PHP11 last year, resulting in a 30-percent increase in the inflation for tricycle fare.

Inflation in the NCR increased to 2.5 percent in October from 2.2 percent the previous month; while in those areas outside the NCR also went up to 2.5 percent from 2.4 percent. (MNS)

Duterte signs EO placing price cap on Covid-19 tests

MANILA (Mabuhay) — Swab testing will soon be made affordable to more Filipinos after President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday signed an executive order placing a price cap on reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing and test kits for coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

Executive Order No. 118 directs the Department of Health (DOH), in coordination with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to ensure accessibility and affordability of Covid-19 tests and test kits.

In signing the EO, Duterte recognized the priority of the state to ensure that the general public, especially those from low- and middle-income households, have “equitable access” to quality and affordable healthcare services such as Covid-19 tests. "The DOH, in coordination with the DTI, is hereby directed to determine, formulate, and implement a price range for Covid-19 testing conducted by hospitals, laboratories, and other health establishments and facilities, included the test kits used in the conduct of said tests, subject to existing laws, rules, and regulations," the EO read.

Both agencies must also ensure that the price range for Covid-19 testing and test kits is "just, equitable, and sensitive to all stakeholders."

Compliance with the price range must form part of the standards and requirements for licensing and accreditation of hospitals, laboratories, and other health establishments and facilities as Covid-19 testing centers. "The DOH shall release the appropriate issuances directing all hospitals, laboratories, and other health establishments, and facilities with existing accreditation to operate a Covid-19 diagnostic laboratory, to observe the aforesaid price range. Failure to comply therewith may be considered as a ground for the revocation of existing licenses or accreditation," the EO read.

Under the EO, the DOH must institute measures to ensure that all accredited Covid-19 laboratories observe transparency in the pricing of tests, and ensure that the public is fully informed of the component costs of medical services and procedures relating to Covid-19.

The DOH and DTI must undertake continuous monitoring and review of the price and market supply of Covid-19 test kits and other basic medical items and supplies, and issue such price control measures and adjustments as may be necessary.

Necessary guidelines for the effective implementation of the order must also be formulated and issued by the DOH and DTI.

EO 118 takes effect immediately upon publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation.

While many public hospitals and other healthcare facilities offer affordable Covid-19 testing ranging from PHP1,750 to PHP2,000, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said he could not dispute that it would be “ideal” for the President to sign an EO.

Roque also expressed hope that once pool or batch testing is given the green light, it would further reduce the cost of testing.

Pool testing involves combining samples from several people and test them together instead of running them individually. (MNS)