PBBM lauds Pinoy music on vlog

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. reminisced about the past with music as he envisions Filipino talents for music and arts on his latest Youtube vlog.

The President answered various questions posted by some people on social media regarding the recent event of President Marcos for the troops of the AFP at the Palace grounds.

President Marcos said that Filipino artists do deserve the spotlight because of music which is one of the cornerstones of the culture in the Philippines.

Mr. Marcos answered questions about

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From A1 matter expert exchange (SMEE) conducted by the 38th Air Defense Artillery Brigade of the United States Army at Naval Education, Training and Doctrine Command in San Antonio, Zambales on April 19.

"During the learning session, subject matter experts from the 38th Air Defense Artillery Brigade discussed the operations, role, various specifications, capabilities, and key parts of the Patriot missile defense system involving the radar set, engagement control station,

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From A1 him with a testimonial parade at Fort Del Pilar in Baguio City on Saturday.

He is a member of the PMA “Makatao” class of 1989.

“Like a roller coaster. Most of the time down, but we were able to recover,” Azurin said of his stint as top cop.

He attributed the PNP’s milestone achievements, particularly in thecontinuing battle against illegal drugs, to the combined efforts of the police force.

PNP spokesperson Jean Fajardo earlier said the police force would leave it to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. the task to choose its new chief.

A change-of-command and retirement honors ceremony for Azurin is scheduled at the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City on Monday.

The ceremony will conclude Azurin's nine-month stint as chief of the country's 220,000-strong police force, which had been marred by controversies including an alleged cover-up of a P6.7-billion drug bust in Manila last October.

Azurin was also quick to defend Brig. Gen. Narciso Domingo, one of the police officials allegedly involved in the said cover-up.

Speaking at a turnover of the Calabarzon Police Regional Office onSunday, Azurin insisted Domingo, head of the Police Drug Enforcement Group at the time of the bust, had a clean reputation and was honestin all his dealings.

“Unfortunately, some of his personnel thought that it’s still businessas usual. That’s why he requested for that investigation so that he will not be suspected of covering up for his (men),” Azurin said.

Meanwhile, Azurin said he was planning to spend more time with his family after his retirement, even possibly taking them on a vacation.

He also said he was willing to remain a member of the independent five-man panel tasked to screen re-

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From A1 whether he will bring back the old program of his Father, the late President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos Sr. which was the "Concert at the Park."

Philippine government was getting more information on the ground to better prepare and ascertain if an evacuation is possible.

“We have about 300 people in Sudan. Unfortunately, none of the airports are functioning. They are still under fire,” President Marcos said.

“We are just waiting to get better information as to whether or not it will be safe to bring our evacuees out of Khartoum, perhaps into Cairo,” the Chief Executive pointed out.

He explained there was no identified secure land route yet as the Sudanese capital of Khartoum is hundreds of miles away from Egypt, where the nearest Philippine Embassy is located.

As of Thursday, the Department of Foreign Affairs said at least 86 have requested to be evacuated or repatriated from the country.

According to the World Health Organization, over 400 people have died in the continued conflict in Sudan since the in-fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group began on April 15.

A 72-hour truce has fallen through, according to Anadolu reports, quoting a local doctors association’s announcement on Saturday (see related story in World page – Editors).

"It's a successful and brilliant project really, that is why if this became trending and many were interested to watch, maybe we'll bring it back at the Luneta," President Marcos said.

President Marcos then brought back the missile launchers, and the Patriot missile," she said.

The Patriot is one of the premier missile systems of the United States and is classified as a high to medium air defense system. The SMEE is part of the ongoing "Balikatan" joint military exercises, which started April 11 and will end on the 28th.

PAF participants are from the 960th Air and Missile Defense Group (AMDG), the operator of the newly activated ground-based air defense system (GBADS) consisting of SPYDER medium-range missiles from Israel. The first two GBADS batteries were signed police officers of any links to the illegal drug trade.

“It will all depend (on) our President. Definitely, if our servicesare being called by no less than our President then we have to acceptthe challenge. We are here to help him in any way we can because, personally, I believe in his leadership,” he said.

Azurin said: “We value the preservation of life. And we do not need to threaten criminals because the guidance of our President is veryclear, to make this country a safe place whether they are inside or outside of their home,” he said.

He will step down amid the investigation into the alleged involvement of some police officials, including generals, in the 990 kilos of shabu seized from the Drug Enforcement Group’s Master Sgt. Rodolfo Mayor Jr. during a buy bust in Manila in October last year.

He maintained there was no massive cover-up as alleged by InteriorSecretary Benhur Abalos.

He said they were able to unmask the syndicates in the PNP.

“So, all I wish now for the PNP is to decide if it wants to continue our fight against illegal drugs,” he said.

As chief, he said he took care of the welfare of the PNP members whom he considered as the most valuable.

“When we were still cadets, we were always told that if you take care of your people, then definitely they will take care of you. That’s the legacy that I would leave behind,” he said.

Azurin thanked the PMA administration under Lt. Gen. Rowen Tolentino for recognizing his service to the country.

He urged the cadets to continue to uphold the PMA values of courage,integrity, and loyalty.

"Get motivated by challenges and be inspired of everyone’sachievements. You are the future of our nation, and I have no doubt that someday you will make us all proud,” he said.

He was appointed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. as the PNP’s 28th chief in August last year.

Hospitals continue to be targeted in the conflict as both sides failed to fulfill their commitments under the ceasefire, the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors said.

An Anadolu correspondent on the ground said the fighting had spread to Bahri and Omdurman, cities adjacent to Khartoum, the CCSD added, noting that clashes had also taken place around the army headquarters and presidential palace.

Both sides accused each other of violating the truce, with the army claiming that the RSF was pushing more forces to Khartoum, while the paramilitary group said the SAF attacked its forces at different locations.

The evacuation was carried out by the kingdom's naval forces with the support of other branches of the army, the foreign ministry said in a statement Sunday.

It announced the "safe arrival" of 91 Saudi citizens and around 66 nationals from 12 other countries—Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Tunisia, Pakistan, India, Bulgaria, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Canada, and Burkina Faso.

The foreigners included "diplomats and international officials," the ministry said without giving further details.

The SAF said in a statement on Facebook that army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan had received requests from different countries to allow the evacuation memories that he had with his parents called by the social media user "Lola Meldy and Lolo Andie" while playing musical instruments during his childhood days.

Mr. Marcos said that his father's favorite music was the ones sung by Nat King Cole (Nathaniel Adams Coles).

"If he hears the songs of Nat King Cole, he'll get my mother andthey'll dance with each other, that was their favorite." the President said.

One question captured the heart of the President which was, “What was the theme song of him and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos?”

"Oh, it's so easy, ‘Moonlight in commissioned and activated by the PAF on Nov. 8 last year.

"The aforementioned exercise broadened the understanding of the Airand Missile System Operators of 960th AMDG on air and missile defense operations. Likewise, it strengthened ties and comradery between the PAF and its US counterparts," Castillo said. GBADS, also known as the SPYDER Philippines Air Defense System, is amobile air and missile defense system designed to protect critical installations, land-based fixed assets, mobile platforms, and friendly forces from aerial threats, such as combat aircraft, attack helicopters, unmanned air vehi-

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Tulfo, chairperson of the Senate energy committee, said he has discussed the problem with National Electrification Administration (NEA) chief Antonio Almeda.

Almeda said the Occidental Mindoro Electric Cooperative (OMECO), which doesn’t have the funds to buy bunker fuel, would seek a P50-million loan as a temporary solution to the widespread outages in the province.

Almeda also told Tulfo that the NEA has already requested a certificate of exemption from the Department of Energy (DOE) to allow OMECO to enter into the emergency power supply agreement.

This would enable the cooperative to secure modular generator sets from Singapore that can generate up to 17 megawatts (MW).

The NEA also asked for the transfer of four modular generator setswith 2W each from Mindanao to produce an extra 8MW for the province.

These are the same modular gensets that were used in 2013-2014 during the power crisis in Mindanao.

The NEA has also asked DMCI Power Corp. to provide about 5MW of electricity from Oriental Mindoro to Occidental Mindoro. This 5MW will immediately provide an extra four hours of electricity per day in Occidental Mindoro.

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"It is understood that the MVUC to be collected during the initial registration shall likewise be adjusted to cover the corresponding registration validity of their nationals.

"We are waiting for the process to begin in the coming hours as US, UK, France, and China will provide military planes for the evacuation from Khartoum," the statement said.

It added that the Saudi diplomatic mission was the first nation to have its citizens evacuated through Port Sudan, adding that Jordan would use the same route.

Kuwait also said Saturday that it had launched an "emergency operation" to evacuate its citizens.

Foreign Minister Sheikh Salim Abdullah al-Jaber al-Sabah said all Kuwaitis who wanted to return to the Gulf country have safely reachedthe city of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and that efforts continued to get them to Kuwait.

Saudi Arabia "worked to provide all the necessary needs of foreignnationals" ahead of their departure to their respective countries, the statement added.

Saudi state-run Al-Ekhbariya television released several videos of warships approaching Jeddah's port on Saturday.

The evacuees were received by officials and soldiers who distributed sweets on the occasion of the Islamic Eid al-Fitr holiday which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, footage showed. Women and children holding Saudi flags were also seen getting off one of the ships.

Among those who arrived in Jeddah on Saturday was the crew of a Saudi passenger plane that was hit by gunfire

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The vlog also showed the captured moments of the President and theFirst Lady on their 30th wedding anniversary wherein President Marcos asked the First Lady to remarry him.

The vlog ended with a short message from the President calling the Filipinos to sing together towards a brighter future and tomorrow.

"Music is the language that unites mankind, may it be from differentraces, it gives inspiration and image, capturing our hearts and being patriotic, giving colors to those who were in love or to what we are facing," he said. Vince Lopez cles, incoming missiles, guided munition, and rockets.

The Philippines and Singapore are the only two countries in Southeast Asia operating the advanced missile system.

The first two GBAD batteries were delivered on Sept. 24 and 29, 2022, while the third battery is expected on May 24, 2024 under a P6.84 billion contract.

A typical PAF GBADS battery consists of a command-and-control unit,three main firing units equipped with four missile launchers, alongwith two support vehicles for field service and munitions resupply.

Charles Dantes

Tulfo was also informed that the NEA and DOE have requested the Department of Finance (DOF) to remove the restriction on the next loan secured by the National Power Corp. (NPC) so that it can provide a subsidy to OMECO.

Tulfo said NEA has asked NPC to renovate and operate the old and unused NPC plant to generate up to 10MW.

Meanwhile, Romblon Rep. Eleandro Jesus Madrona tore into the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) for alleged failing to act on the NPC’s request to adjust power rates that led to the current power crisis.

He said OMECO was not able to supply enough power due to the NPC’s unpaid subsidies.

“To date, ERC has not approved Napocor's request,” he said.

Occidental Mindoro was placed under a state of calamity due to the power outages for the last month and a half, Occidental Mindoro.

Madrona said the power costs have been rising since 2022 due to increased fuel costs from P30 to P60 per liter.

The failure of ERC to properly arrest the issues may spill over to other small islands being serviced by Small Island Power Utilities Group, such as in Palawan, Mindoro, Masbate, Romblon, and Catanduanes.

“This man-made disaster is not only a source of inconvenience and irritation but will also adversely affects businesses especially tourism, which is one of the main sources of livelihood in these island provinces,” Madrona said.

period," Tugade's Memorandum also stated Sunday.

Based on the LTO data, an estimated two million new motorcycles with displacements 200cc and below are set to be registered this year.

These will be the principal beneficiaries of the new policy.

while preparing to take off from Khartoum at the start of the fighting on April 15, according to Al-Ekhbariya.

The broadcaster said that the evacuees were transported in a convoy of vehicles to Port Sudan from where they boarded ships to Jeddah.

It was the first evacuation of civilians from Sudan since violence erupted there a week ago.

Earlier on Saturday, Sudan's army said its chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan had received calls from leaders of several countries to "facilitate and guarantee safety for evacuating citizens and diplomatic missions."

It noted that the evacuations are expected to begin "in the cominghours," adding the United States, Britain, France and China are planning to airlift their nationals out of Khartoum using military jets.

Clashes erupted on April 15 between forces loyal to Burhan and thoseof his deputy-turned-rival Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The former allies seized power in a 2021 coup but later fell out in a bitter power struggle.

The conflict—much of which has taken place in Khartoum—has left hundreds dead and thousands wounded.

Heavy gunfire, loud explosions, and fighter jets roared in many parts of the capital Saturday morning, according to witnesses. AFP with Vince Lopez