By: BusinessMirror

THE entire province of Zambales will be the country’s major tourist and economic hub in the next 20 years.

This was the picture envisioned by Zambales Gov. Amor Deloso, who is optimistic the province will not only dominate the entire region but also sees it to be a global stage for tourism, trade and commerce.

Deloso believes the province is poised to be the highlight of the Philippines’s future, with billions of pesos in investments and construction projects set to be implemented by both local and foreign investors for the next 10 years.

Kicking off with this 10-year economic plan in the province is the construction of the Zambales Convention Center and the provincial capitol as early as January next year. The governor wants to ensure the people of Zambales will benefit from this development.

Deloso said Zambeleños continue to spend extra money and travel time from their place to neighboring places like Clark, Baguio and Bulacan just to conduct conferences. With these plans in place, locals  don’t have to spend to fly to Baguio, Manila or Makati just to have access to a decent venue for their meetings, seminars, symposia or any corporate and official gathering.

“The construction of this convention center will answer the needs of all sectors here for seminars and conventions of big groups,” Deloso explained.

For the last three decades, Zambales has been relegated to a mere rustic and laid-back summer alternative in the country. Despite having the best beaches in the country, the province is seen as merely a traditional place for fiestas and age-old cultural traditions.

With the vision of local officials and the support of its people, Zambales is finally emerging into a modern province, befitting its stature as a premier tourist destination in the country and in all of Asia.

“We are strategically situated. We are only four hours away from Hong Kong and other Asian countries through navigation. The world is getting congested but, here in our province, there is a vast resource for land, seas and mountains, and it’s about time we turn things around.”

Infrastructure projects will kick off starting next year.

The province has been considering partnerships with foreign and local investors that will see the rise of five-star hotels, a world-class airport and business establishment that will boost industries and trade and commerce in the region.

Asked how he plans to sustain all these development projects of the province, Deloso said Zambales is rich in natural resources and human capital to make these plans a reality.

“Zambales is a very rich province, it has 27 minerals. It might interest you to know that the biggest gold deposits in Asia are in Zambales, and the biggest deposit of chromite in the whole world is in Zambales. Now, chromite mining in Zambales has been going on for 90 years. For 90 years, mining companies have exploited that aside from the gold in San Marcelino.”

Source: businessmirror.com.ph
image source: dot.spindev.ph

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Engr. Manzano passed the November 2017 civil engineering licensure exam on her first take.

Photo Source: gineersnow.com

Rarely do indigenous people get the chance to have formal college education. Opportunities for them to attend school are rare, and to be able to graduate is already the entire tribe’s pride.

What more if one, a woman at that, is able to pass an engineering board exam? And on her first take?

That’s what Ezel Joy Pablo Manzano had accomplished for her Aeta community. She was the reason of the recent celebration of the Amianan tribe, which was moved to the Iram settlement area near Olongapo City in the Philippines after the 1991 Mt. Pinatubo eruption.

In an interview with GMA News, she proudly introduced herself as a passer of the November 2017 civil engineering board exam. She is one of the 6,075 who made it out of the 12,447 takers.

Engr. Manzano, who finished civil engineering in Ramon Magsaysay Technology University in Iba, Zambales, revealed that at one point during her review, she burst into tears because she could no longer understand what she was studying.

She was asked about tips for future board exam takers. Ezel Joy said that they should give it their all because the chance to take board exam only comes rarely.

Her journey to being a registered civil engineer was tough. She recalled that she had to quit school for one semester due to financial reasons.

This became her motivation to pass her board exam. And she also persevered to achieve the dream of her deceased father for her.

She said, “Pangarap ‘yun ng tatay ko, kaya ‘yun po talaga ang nagpu-push sa akin na i-pursue ‘yun. [It was my father’s dream for me, so I pushed myself to pursue this field.]”

Estrelita Manzano, Ezel Joy’s mother, witnessed her daughter’s struggles. She shared that even without the presence of her father, Ezel Joy still did what she could do best in terms of her academics.

Now that she is an engineer, Ezel Joy doesn’t forget those who have helped her along the way. She plans to pursue a career that will help her tribe in any way possible.

Source: gineersnow.com

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SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — After hatching in a busy beach resort here, some 100 baby sea turtles (pawikan) made their way back home on Saturday.

by:Allan Macatuno

INTO THE SEA Children release newly hatched sea turtles at a beach resort in Subic Bay Freeport.—PHOTOS BY ALLAN MACATUNO

The olive ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) were born at a hatchery of All Hands Beach and began their voyage as soon as they were released back to the open sea.

“We let them crawl and reach the sea on their own. They have imprint characteristic. They imprint on the unique magnetic field of their birthplace and the female ones use this information to return to this beach to nest,” said Emerita Sebial, chief of the Protected Areas, Wildlife and Coastal Zone Management Services in Olongapo City.

The female pawikan would return to this beach to lay eggs in the next 20 to 25 years, she said.

But the journey of these from their birthplace will be difficult, according to Marife Castillo, the community environment and natural resources officer.

“Only 1 percent of this batch of sea turtles is expected to survive to adulthood because of several obstacles, including the presence of predators in the ocean,” Castillo said.

Aside from being eaten by bigger marine creatures, such as sharks and fish, baby sea turtles face threats caused by humans, including ocean pollution and poaching, she said.

“It is important that we take care of our marine ecosystem so we could help protect these marine animals from various threats to their survival in the wild,” she said.

Sebial said olive ridley is among the three species of sea turtles found in Zambales province. Green sea turtles

(Chelonia mydas) and hawksbill sea turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) have also been sighted in the province’s waters.

Amethya dela Llana, head of the Ecology Center of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, said seven more nests of eggs found at All Hands Beach were expected to hatch in the next few weeks.

“This batch is the first this season. The 120 baby sea turtles released now raised to 3,877 the number of turtles that the management of All Hands Beach had released since 2011,” Dela Llana said.

source:newsinfo.inquirer.net

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CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga—At least 295 centenarians in Central Luzon have availed themselves of P100,000 centenarian-cash gift from the national government through the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Photo by: webbline.com

Susan Hernandez of the DSWD’s Social Pension Unit said the figure represents 86 percent of the 342 target who already received their centenarian cash incentive.

Bulacan has the highest number with 90 beneficiaries for total centenarian cash incentives of P9 million; Nueva Ecija with 69 beneficiaries, P6.9 million; Pampanga with 49 beneficiaries, P4.9 million; Tarlac with 45 beneficiaries, P4.5 million; Zambales and Bataan with 17 beneficiaries each, for a P3.4-million total; and Aurora with eight beneficiaries, P800,000.

In addition, there were 107 senior citizens who complied with the requirements per guidelines of the program, Hernandez said.

The DSWD field office in Region 3 coordinated with local government units (LGUs) for the payout, using the door-to-door scheme as mode of payment to some centenarians who could no longer travel, are bedridden, or in the hospital.

Section 2 of Republic Act 10868 or the “Centenarians Act of 2016,” stated all Filipinos who reach the age of 100 years old, whether residing in the Philippines or abroad, shall be honored with a Letter of Felicitation from the President of the Philippines congratulating the celebrant for his or her longevity, and a centenarian gift in the amount of P100,000.

The centenarians will receive a plaque of recognition and cash incentive from their respective city or municipal governments in appropriate ceremonies. The amount of the additional incentive shall be determined by the LGUs concerned.

Under the law, the awards and incentives are given to the centenarians on the first Sunday of October, declared as the National Respect for Centenarians Day in line with the Elderly Filipino Week celebration.

However, considering the age of the centenarians, the DSWD released the cash gift to the identified beneficiaries earlier.

Centenarians who died upon the effectivity of the law will be given a posthumous plaque of recognition together with the cash incentive to be received by their nearest surviving relative or family.

To avail themselves of the cash incentive, a centenarian must present their birth certificate or Philippine passport for those living overseas.

If these documents are not available, the centenarian may present their senior citizen’s identification card or any other Philippine government-issued ID showing their citizenship and date of birth.

source:businessmirror.com.ph/a>

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By: Julito G. Rada

THE Department of Finance, through its Revenue Integrity Protection Service, plans to conduct lifestyle checks on at least 70 more employees in the main office and its attached agencies, such as the Bureau of Customs and Bureau of Internal Revenue, before the end of the year in line with the Duterte administration’s goal of weeding out corruption in the government.

Finance Undersecretary Bayani Agabin, who oversees the RIPS, said the investigation will cover officials and employees who have acquired real estate and personal properties with amounts not commensurate to their annual salaries. “For instance, there is one that we are investigating?in 1996 his annual salary was P80,000, he was able to buy a lot worth P40,000. Then in 1997, he [reported that his] annual salary was P126,000, but he was able to buy a lot for P150,000. His annual salary is not even enough to pay for that lot,” Agabin said.

RIPS executive director Ray Gilberto Espinosa said his office added at least 10 more personnel covered by lifestyle checks every month.

“So we started actively initiating investigations last January, and we are targeting around 70 plus by the end of the year,” Espinosa said.

The RIPS, which is the anti-corruption arm of the department, forwards cases for further investigation and resolution to either the Office of the Ombudsman or the Civil Service Commission.

From January to September 2017, decisions were promulgated by the Ombudsman and CSC finding several  employees and officials of Customs and  the BIR guilty of Grave Misconduct and Serious Dishonesty and finding anomalies regarding the accomplishment and filing of their Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth reports, the RIPS said in a recent statement.

In the administrative cases filed by RIPS, the penalty of dismissal from the service was imposed on two BIR employees and three BOC employees that carried penalties of forfeiture of benefits, perpetual disqualification to hold public office and a bar to taking the Civil Service Examinations.

Judith Pacana, chief revenue officer IV of the BIR Iligan City, was  guilty of Serious Dishonesty and Grave Misconduct by the Ombudsman in its Decision dated 06 June 2017, holding that “[Pacana’s] failure to disclose a significant number of her assets and liability in several SALNs.”

In the case involving Ester Grafil Sese, an Administrative Aide at Customs who was only earning P78,264.00 in gross salary in 2012, the Ombudsman found that she failed to declare various motor vehicles in her 2000 to 2010 SALNs, falsely declared the acquisition cost of her assets, failed to declare various firearms in her 2012 to 2013 SALNs, and failed to declare a townhouse in her 2002 SALN.

The Ombudsman in its Decision dated Oct. 26, 2016 ordered Sese’s dismissal from the service for Serious Dishonesty and Grave Misconduct.

In another case, Visitacion Difuntorum, Customs Operations Officer V of Customs, was found guilty of Dishonesty  for failing to declare in her SALNs various lands located in Quezon City and Catarman, Samar, from 1995 to 2006.

Also, a Customs Special Agent, Ramir Saunders Gomez, was ordered dismissed from the service  by the Ombudsman for Serious Dishonesty and Grave Misconduct for  failing to declare six real properties discovered by RIPS in Old Cabalan, Olongapo City, in his SALN.

In the CSC, the RIPS won the case against Ma. Herminia A. Pabito, Revenue Officer IV of the BIR, who was found to have failed to declare in her 2009 to 2011 SALNs a piece of property registered in Pabito’s name and her sister; and failed to secure travel authorities for her travels in Bangkok, Thailand, Shanghai, China and Hong Kong.

For failure to secure the necessary authority to travel abroad to Singapore, a Supervising Tax Specialist of Customs was found guilty of Simple Dishonesty aggravated by committing it twice.

Some of the above government employees are going to be charged with criminal cases.

The Ombudsman found that eight Customs employees and one BIR employee committed Perjury and Falsification by a Public Officer under the Revised Penal Code and for their SALN violations.

Source: thestandard.com.ph

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