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TUESDAY, AUGUST 17, 2021
News
Palace wishes quick recovery for Mayor Isko By Vito Barcelo
A member of the Manila Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office disinfects the office of Mayor Francisco ‘Isko Moreno’ Domagoso after he tested positive for COVID-19.
Marcos hits intermittent internet signal FORMER senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Monday bewailed the government’s failure to improve internet connectivity in the country, saying it has greatly affected the needed progress of remote learning and work-fromhome setup. “As long as the internet signal is not good here, we will not be able to do remote learning via the internet. The internet signal must reach all our students no matter where they are in the country so that no one will be left behind,” Marcos said. Aside from improving online connectivity, Marcos is also pushing for free internet connection for students under the Department of Education’s blended learning system. Based on a survey conducted by DepEd itself, some 6.9 million parents and guardians said that having a stable mobile/internet connection is a challenge for them in addition to the lack of available gadgets and equipment for their children’s distance education. Respondents also lamented they do not have the capability to buy gadgets or even load for online classes. “The DepEd must immediately address the problem that is becoming an obstacle to the progress of the blended learning system in the country,” he said. Marcos also challenged the country’s telecommunications companies to improve their internet services. “The telcos should step up. It’s now in the hands of our telcos to step up and to make sure that connectivity is available to all of our students. We have to use all tools available and I’m looking at the experience of our parents and students and I’ve seen firsthand that connectivity is indeed a big problem,” he said.
Bulacan bettor wins P48 million Lotto jackpot A BETTOR from Bulacan province bagged the P48-million jackpot prize on Sunday night’s draw of the Super Lotto 6/49, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office said Monday. The bettor guessed the winning combination 26-24-07-12-01-09. The lucky ticket was purchased in San Jose Del Monte City, Bulacan. Meanwhile, 34 other bettors who guessed five correct numbers won second prize and will receive P50,000 each while 1,528 bettors will receive P1,200 for guessing four correct numbers and 17,634 bettors won P50 each for guessing three right combinations. To claim the check, the PCSO advised the bettor to go to its main office in Mandaluyong City, present two IDs, and bring the winning ticket. The 6/49 Super Lotto is drawn every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. Earlier, PCSO said the selling of tickets for the lotto and all other digit games was suspended in Metro Manila from Aug. 6 to 20 during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). In an advisory, the PCSO, however, said the selling of tickets will continue in the other regions that are not under ECQ, and that the draws will continue to be held at the PCSO Main Office in Mandaluyong City.
Koko hits ‘secret agenda’ of Cusi-led PDP faction T By Macon Ramos-Araneta
HE faction in the ruling party led by Energy Sec. Alfonso Cusi has a “secret agenda” in grabbing power from Senator Manny Pacquiao and threatening to expel him from PDP-Laban, Senator Aquilino Pimentel III said.
Pimentel, son of the late founder of PDP, Aquilino Jr., said he believes the Cusi-led wing looks at Pacquiao as a “big obstacle” to implementing their hidden goal. “First, they go to great extent to illegally and illegitimately grab power within PDP- Laban because they have a secret hidden agenda and I think Sen
Manny Pacquiao is an obstacle to that,” he said. “Now they are making an issue about Sen Manny Pacquiao being a member of PDP-Laban, which is a national party, and of PCM, which is a regional party,” Pimentel added. He said being a member of both the PDP-Laban or a regional party or even a
party-list organization was never an issue in the decades that he has run the party. “The reason is very easy to see: there is no conflict between a national political party and a regional political party, and even with a party list organization. Those are political operations under different levels,” Pimentel said. He said President Rodrigo Duterte himself is a member of a local party in Davao City while Cusi has his own political party in Oriental Mindoro as well as a party-list organization. “These new members of PDP-Laban clearly do not know anything about the PDP-Laban party Constitution, how this has been interpreted and applied over the decades, our party history, and basic principles and beliefs,” Pimentel said.
CONTACT-LESS ENROLLMENT.
Principal IV Leo Cabaruan and teacher Kemmy Olfindo prepare the enrollment drop box at the Sta. Ana Elementary School in Manila on Monday, August 16, 2021. Due to the pandemic, parents will only drop the application forms of children for the coming school year 2021-2022. Danny Pata
Bayanihan 3 to fund Genome Center expansion—Salceda By Maricel V. Cruz CONGRESS is pushing for the expansion of the Philippine Genome Center to Visayas and Mindanao through the proposed Bayanihan 3 Act as the country grapples with the emergence of more transmissible variants of COVID-19. Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, co-chair of the House economic stimulus and recovery cluster, said they are committed to including the funding in the proposed third
Bayanihan package. “It’s a more basic, tighter Bayanihan package that will deal with our most essential needs, including ayuda, medical assistance, cash-for-work, relief, and medical interventions, including genome sequencing. It is also more flexible, so that the Executive can mix and match the allocations as needed,” Salceda said. “And we are committed to funding the expansion of the Philippine Genome Center. We should have done
this much earlier, but now that there is an opening with the economic managers, we will seize the opportunity to fund this need,” he added. Earlier this month, the Philippine Genome Center sought funding from the government and private sector for the expansion of its coverage to Visayas and Mindanao. The Center estimated its required funding at an additional P100 million, which Salceda said Bayanihan 3 will fully cover.
MALACAÑANG on Monday wished Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso a speedy recovery after he tested positive for COVID-19. Moreno was brought to the Sta. Ana Hospital Sunday night after experiencing Covid-19 symptoms such as cough, colds, and body pains. “We wish Mayor Isko Moreno good health. We hope that he gets well soon,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a Palace press briefing. Roque also allayed concerns that COVID-19 vaccines were not effective since Moreno contracted the disease despite being fully inoculated. “Experts are not saying that vaccines guarantee we will not get infected with COVID. What experts are saying is all vaccines are effective to prevent severe illness and death due to COVID-19,” he said. Roque expressed hope that Moreno would only experience mild to moderate symptoms since he has already been inoculated. “I think his getting hospitalized is a precaution. Perhaps he will only be a moderate COVID-19 case and not critical because he is vaccinated,” he said. Dr. Grace Padilla, director of Sta. Ana Hospital, said Moreno is currently in a stable condition and is being treated with antibiotics and supplements. “His RT-PCR [reverse transcription - polymerase chain reaction] test result turned out positive. Lab tests were taken, and the initial findings of his chest CT Scan result is normal. Our clinical impression: He has mild covid disease,” Padilla said. Moreno’s diagnosis came a week after Manila Vice Mayor Honey Lacuna confirmed that she had tested positive for COVID-19. Padilla said Lacuna is still recovering after being admitted last week.
Patients in tents, ERs assured of PhilHealth cover PATIENTS admitted in emergency rooms (ERs) and tents within hospital compounds pending the availability of hospital rooms are covered by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth). This was reiterated by the state health insurer as COVID-19 cases continue to surge and several health care facilities have reportedly been running at full capacity to accommodate patients. In its Advisory Nos. 2021-027 and 2021-028, PhilHealth stressed that when admitted patients must stay in ER or within the hospital premises pending availability of rooms, full payment shall be given, provided the patient stayed in the hospital for 24 hours or more. The Department of Health through Memorandum No. 2020-0171 has instructed hospitals to adopt strategies to increase their capacities to manage the surge of COVID-19 cases, including setting up tents when necessary. PhilHealth beneficiaries admitted in tents within the compound of accredited hospitals in areas categorized as high to critical risk for COVID-19 shall be compensable starting March 29, 2021. The state agency also asserted that patients, including COVID-19 cases, being admitted and managed in ER due to lack of available regular rooms shall be paid by PhilHealth if the patient stayed within the hospital for at least 24 hours. However, private hospitals are required to submit a justification letter together with their claim in compliance with the said policy.
Hero dog statue pays homage to aspins By Frencie Carreon ZAMBOANGA CITY—The Kabang Memorial Statue in honor of the hero dog was inaugurated and blessed in Pasonanca in this city over the weekend. Kabang, honored as AmbassaDog of Goodwill for Responsible Pet Ownership and a Global Advocate for Animal Welfare, died in her sleep on May 17 this year at the age of 13, or 91 in human years. She was buried on the same site near the statue of Saint Francis of Assisi outside the premises of the St. Francis Orphanage. Ambassadog Kabang’s 4-feet aluminum sculpture was molded by the hands of Davaoeño artist Kublai Millan, and stands atop a 4-feet pedestal. The monument was designed by Architect Keith San Antonio, and executed by another Zamboangueño architect, Romeo dela Cruz. Veterinarian Dr. Anton Mari Lim recalled the day Kabang died: “She was simply motionless in her bed with feet soiled from running around with the other dogs. She has always been a heroine, selfless
to a fault, when she jumped on a speeding motorcycle to prevent her two young masters from getting hit and lost her upper snout.” “It is meant to pay homage to the humility of aspins or street dogs in the country,” Dr. Lim said. “The simplistic shape and form reflect their modest but elegant nature and at the same time, exhibits stability as they are the most common dog breed that Filipinos can rely on.” A social media page was created in May this year featuring the memorial marker, which describes the architectural design of the monument, when it was proposed then. “The split in the center displays contemporary elements of the vinta sail that evokes Zamboanga, where Kabang is from. It also represents the pride that the heroism of Kabang brought to the hearts of the Filipinos, especially the Zamboangueños.” As Japan has its memorial marker for Hachiko, a Japanese Akita dog, the Philippines now has one for Kabang, which, according to Lim, is the “first of its kind in the Philippines and yearns to inspire appreciation and increase awareness to the significance of aspins in our country.”
The Kabang Memorial Statue near St. Francis of Assisi statue in Pasonanca Natural Park, Zamboanga City. Standing at a total of 8 feet in height, it is taller than that of the Hachiko statue in Shibuya, Japan. It is the first of its kind in the Philippines. Frencie Carreon
