News
TUESDAY, AUGUST 17, 2021 mst.daydesk@gmail.com
Quit paying ‘tax’ to communists or face raps, NICA warns traders T By Willie Casas and Francisco Tuyay
HE National Intelligence Coordinating Agency issued a stern warning Monday against companies and individuals that they will face charges for paying extortion money to the Communist Party of the Philippines -New People’s Army-National Democratic Front which, in effect, finances the group’s reign of terror, especially in the countryside.
At the weekly virtual press conference of the National Task Force to End Local Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), NICA Director General Alex Paul Monteagudo said that they are now in the process of collating evidence on several companies and individuals that are paying “revolutionary tax” to the NPA. “We will be filing cases. NTF-ELCAC is pursuing it,” he said. Monteagudo also reiterated that NICA
has compiled a list of companies and individuals that provide financial support to the Communist Terrorist Groups and are now the subject of an investigation. The NICA chief, however, was quick to assure companies that wish to cooperate with the authorities would be receiving protection and support from the government to avoid prosecution and the possible freezing of their assets by the Anti-Money Laundering Council.
Based on the NICA report, out of the total P5.4 billion in extortion money which the CTG had collected from 2016 to 2018, mining and quarrying companies have coughed up more than P3 billion, making them by far the biggest “victims” of communist terrorist extortion in the Philippines. Monteagudo also said that the CPP-NPANDF received about P13.5 million from telecom companies which NICA believed was just a small portion of the real figure. The intelligence agency has received information from Panay province that the CTGs are demanding up to P50,000 per cell site per month for “protection”. “You can just imagine that per cell site is about P600,000 annually. If the CTGs can demand protection from just 2,000 cell sites or 10% of the 23,000 cell sites in the country… That would already be P1 billion a year,” the official explained. Agri-business and fishpond owners’ payments were estimated at P804.3 million.
Monteagudo said that when these farmers and fisherfolk do not give in to the demands of the CPP-NPA-NDF, their farms and livelihood are destroyed by the terrorists. Construction firms or contractors followed in third place by paying a hefty sum of P789.4 million from 2016 to 2018. Monteagudo, however, pointed out that the report does not include the CTGs extortion of Triple A construction companies who have current contracts with the government’s Build, Build, Build Program. Monteagudo said that politicians also contributed about P76.7 million to the CPP-NPA-NDF during elections, while moneyed and rich individuals gave some P121.5 million to the terrorist group’s fund. Monteagudo said these funds are transacted directly at the CPP-NPA-NDF Central Committee. “No money goes to the local NPA,” he said, referring to the armed wing that carries out the extortion activities.
DepEd called out for lapses in fund use AFTER the Department of Heath, the Department of Education came next to be flagged by the Commission on Audit over its ‘deficiencies” in the use of P8.136 billion COVID-19 funds, citing the nonsubmission of requisite documents. Government auditors also found lapses in the budget utilization of the agency, non-compliance with Republic Act No. 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act, as well as incomplete procurement and delivery of self-learning modules that delayed the conduct of distance learning. “The audit team recognizes and understands the challenges posed by the current working condition,” the COA said in its report. “However, it has to be emphasized that the implementation of the program should not be affected by the setback in the timely release of the fund to maximize the benefits that can be derived therefrom and to assure the overall preparedness of the implementing schools in order to continue students’ learning amidst the threat and uncertainties brought about by the pandemic,” it added. COA said delays in the delivery of modules to students were attributed to deficient planning, poor monitoring of deliveries, the failure of suppliers to complete the requirements within the agreed term, and the delayed transmittal of the final soft copy of modules for printing. The audit report also observed errors in the SLMs in the National Capital Region, Cordillera Administrative Region and Central Luzon, such as errors in spellings, punctuations and other typographical errors. Among the reasons for the errors cited by the concerned regional offices of DepEd were the unclear directives from the central office on the preparation of modules and lack of teachers’ training. The audit team recommended that the DepEd improve and strengthen its review process, scrutiny and evaluation of modules, and take heed of operational timelines in the conduct of procurement processes that need urgent and immediate action, among others. DepEd said in a statement the COA findings may be used for the improvement of its budget management. “Those noted by the Commission were mainly identified as recording errors which are now being rectified by DepEd following the instructions/recommendations of the auditing agency,” the DepEd said.
50% SOLUTION. A member of the Manila Police District’s Station 5 enforces health and safety protocols against COVID-19 requiring public utility vehicles to operate on a 50 percent passenger capacity on August 16, 2021 and minimize the risk of infection among commuters. Stricter controls under ECQ are in effect amid the lingering threat of the highly transmissible Delta variant. Norman Cruz
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Immigration men at airports ready to serve OFWs 24/7 By Vito Barcelo THE Bureau of Immigration said it was ready to process thousands of returning overseas Filipinos who are being repatriated from abroad amid the raging COVID-19 pandemic. Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said the BI will always see to it that the number of immigration officers deployed at the international airports is always adequate so that passengers of these repatriation flights are served properly and processed upon their arrival in the country. “We assure our returning Kababayan, the airlines, airport authorities, and organizers of these repatriation efforts that we have the sufficient manpower to address their needs insofar as conducting immigration formalities for these passengers are concerned,” Morente said. The BI chief issued the statement after Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. described the ongoing repatriation of overseas Filipinos as the biggest ever in Philippine history. Locsin even surmised that what is happening could possibly be the “biggest repatriation anywhere, of any country, in the world.” Statistics cited from Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana indicate that since last year when the pandemic broke out, more than a million Filipinos, mostly overseas contract workers, were already repatriated from various countries. It has been observed that the last mass repatriation of this magnitude occurred in 1991 during the Gulf War when more than 20,000 to 30,000 were sent home from the Middle East. Lawyer Carlos Capulong, BI port operations chief, said there has been an upsurge in the number of arriving repatriated Filipinos since the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Infectious Diseases (IATF) recently authorized the different airlines to mount special commercial flights that wouldbring home Filipinos who remain stranded abroad due to the pandemic. Capulong said the BI continues to operate at full capacity at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) despite the implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Metro Manila.
‘Booster shots’ on hold until nation’s protected—Palace MALACAÑANG has urged those getting COVID-19 “booster shots” to wait for the country to achieve population protection first before receiving more than the required number of doses. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said citing reports that some individuals received more than their single or two-dose Covid vaccines. “We do not tolerate that because there are so many individuals that have yet to be vaccinated. Since all vaccines provide protection, our appeal is to wait for majority of our citizens to get fully vaccinated before receiving booster shots,” he said in a Palace press briefing. Roque said life can only return to normal once the country is able to reduce the number of deaths and hospitalized patients through vaccination. Vaccines are the only solution to put an end to this pandemic. Let us achieve population protection before we get our booster shots,” he added. Roque said only overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and seafarers will be
given the exception of selecting western COVID-19 brands to comply with requirements set by their employers. Perhaps we can make an exception for OFWs and seafarers because that is the requirement of their employers,” he said. He also urged OFWs and seafarers to only receive COVID-19 vaccine brands required by their employers so as not to receive more than one brand. If you are a seafarer and know that you need a particular brand, don’t get inoculated with a different brand. Get the brand required by your employers so we can give other brands to those who are also in need,” he said. Earlier, National Task Force Against COVID-19 Deputy Chief Implementer and testing czar Vince Dizon said the government seeks the complete vaccination of at least 50 percent of Metro Manila residents by end of August. The government initially planned to vaccinate up to 70 million people to achieve population protection by yearend.
SPECIAL CONCERN. Pasay City’s barangay watchmen barricade the street and place an area on Natividad St. under special concern lockdown after seven people are infected with COVID-19 on Monday, August 16, 2021. Residents of the area are made to stay home and receive ayuda from the local government while the lockdown remains in effect. Danny Pata
Taal’s vog bad for health—Philvolcs
MILK BANK. Personnel of Quezon City Human Milk Bank hold samples of pasteurized breast milk for the benefit of inneed babies admitted at the neonatal intensive care unit of Tala Hospital in Caloocan City.The Quezon City government donated the milk for infants whose mothers are COVID-19 patients and in quarantine. Manny Palmero
VOLCANOLOGISTS warn the public to take extra precaution particularly those with certain health problems as volcanic smog (vog) and high emission of sulfur dioxide (S02) have been observed in the Taal Volcano for the past 24 hours. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said Monday that people particularly those near and in outlying areas of Taal with health conditions such as asthma, lung disease, and heart disease, as well as the elderly, pregnant women and children are sensitive to the ill effects of vog. Vog is a type of air pollution caused by volcanic eruptions. It consists of fine droplets containing volcanic gas such as SO2
which is acidic and can cause irritation of the eyes, throat, and respiratory tract in severities depending on the gas concentrations and durations of exposure. The S02 gas could irritate the skin, eyes, nose, throat. The aerosol particles in vog could also penetrate the lungs and could induce the symptoms of asthma. S02 emission averaged 5,675 tonnes on August 15, and vog was observed over Taal Volcano and its vicinity, Phivolcs said. Meanwhile, 74 volcanic earthquakes caused by movement or eruptions of magma from the volcano were recorded in the Taal Volcano for the past 24 hours. These lasted for 1 to 20 minutes. Activity at the Main Crater
was dominated by upwelling of hot volcanic fluids in its lake which generated plumes 1,800 meters tall that drifted southsouthwest and northeast, Phivolcs said. Taal Volcano has been on Alert Level 2 (decreased unrest) since July 23. Under this level, sudden steam or gas-driven explosions, volcanic earthquakes, minor ashfall, and lethal accumulations or expulsions of volcanic gas can occur and threaten areas within and around the Taal Volcano Island. Phivolcs also bars entry into TVI , advising local government officials to assess and strengthen the preparedness of previously evacuated barangays around Taal Lake in case of renewed unrest.
Manila
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES Standard COMMISSION ON APPOINTMENTS
TODAY
ANNOUNCEMENT President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has submitted to the Commission on Appointments (CA) for its consent on the nominations of the following senior officers in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), namely: 1. BARTOLOME VICENTE O. BACARRO 2. ROBERTO S. CAPULONG 3. ROLANDO E. NERONA 4. PETER ANGELO L. RAMOS 5. EDUARDO B. GUBAT 6. LEONARDO I. PEÑA 7. BIENVENIDO J. CASACLANG 8. FLORANTE P. SISON 9. JAIME A. ABAWAG JR. 10. IRINEO F. SEBASTIAN 11. GEORGE JOEL N. LALAQUIL 12. JEFFREY M. VILELA 13. SANTIAGO I. ENGINCO
to the rank of Lieutenant General, PA to the rank of Major General, PA to the rank of Major General, PA to the rank of Major General, PA to the rank of Brigadier General, PA to the rank of Brigadier General, PA to the rank of Brigadier General, PAF to the rank of Brigadier General, PA to the rank of Brigadier General, PA to the rank of Brigadier General, PA to the rank of Brigadier General, PA to the rank of Brigadier General, PAF to the rank of Brigadier General, PA
The public may submit any information, written report, or sworn/notarized complaints or oppositions to the above nominations in seven (7) copies to the CA Secretariat, 6th Floor, PNB Financial Center, D. Macapagal Blvd., Pasay City, Metro Manila. For the schedule of the public hearings, the CA Secretariat can be reached through telephone numbers 8834-2713, 8831-1824, 8831-0527, 8832-9830, 88342706 and 8551-1989. 16 August 2021. HECTOR A. VILLACORTA Secretary (MS-AUGUST 17, 2021)
