Dinaluhan ng mahigit sa dalawampung miyembro ng local at national media ang press briefing na ipinatawag ng Social Security System sa pamamagitan ng Philippine Information Agency Region 3 Martes ng hapon sa Subic Bay Freeport.

Ulat ni Lolito Ramada Go

Pinangunahan ni SSS Chairman Amado Valdez ang pag-uulat sa mga nagawa at sa mga gagawin pa ng SSS sa ilalim ng kanyang pamunuan. Sinimulan nito ang kanyang talumpati sa pagsasabing ang SSS ay maihahalintulad sa karakter na si Robinhood na kumukuha mula sa mayayaman upang ibahagi sa mga maralita.Kasama rin ni Valdez sina SSS Olongapo Branch Head Marilou Santos at SSS Central Luzon OIC Gloria Corazon Andrada.

Ilan sa mga naitanong sa naturang press briefing ay kung may kapangyarihan ba ang naturang ahensya na magsampa ng kaso o kailangan pang tumungo ang mga nagrereklamo sa DOLE kaugnay ng hinaing ng ilang empleyado sa SBMA na diumano’y dinadaya ng kanilang employers. May mga sumbong diumano kasi na hindi naireremit sa SSS ang mga ikinakaltas sa sahod ng mga manggagawa.Mabilis naman itong tinugunan ni Valdez sa pagsasabing marami na umano silang naipakulong kaugnay ng mga katulad na sumbong.

Pinasalamatan din nito ang media at hiniling ang patuloy na kooperasyon upang higit na mabantayan ang interes ng mga empleyado. Tinalakay din ang pagkakaroon ng general membership para sa mga informal sector, sa mga artist, kasapi ng media at iba pang sektor ng lipunan. Kabilang naman sa huling tinalakay ang mga hakbang upang mas mapabilis ang claiming process at ang pagre-release ng mga SSS card. Ayon kay Valdez susi umano ang modernisasyon at ang ginagawa nilang upgrading sa kanilang electronic system.

First Published: Subic Broadcasting Corporation @ Facebook

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The United States government, in partnership with the University of the Philippines Los Baños Foundation, Inc. (UPLBFI), recently marked the completion of the P76 million Bicol Agri-Water Project (BAWP) during a Farmers’ Summit at the Macagang Business Center in Nabua, Camarines Sur.

(L-R) USAID Executive Office Acting Chief Timothy Marlowe, DA-RFO5 Technical Director Rodell Tornilla, Bicol Agri-Water Project (BAWP) Director Dr. Agnes Rola, Agricultural Training Institute Policy and Planning Division Assistant Head Dr. Vicente Dayanghari Jr., Bicol University Graduate School Dean Dr. Antonio Payonga, and BAWP Co-Principal Investigator Dr. Cely Binoya at the Farmers’ Summit in Nabua, Camarines Sur on July 14, 2017

The five-year program, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), introduced local farmers to new technologies and innovative rice farming practices to reduce the impact of natural calamities and improve food security in the region.

As a result of the project’s Climate Field School Program, more than 600 farmers are now using disaster-resilient practices, while local government partners have adopted the use of a seasonal climate forecast. At the Farmers’ Summit, USAID also presented the Philippine Department of Agriculture (DA) with a training manual for farmers on how natural disasters impact rice production and how they can use different farming techniques to improve harvests.

“USAID is pleased to work with our partners to help rice farmers in the Bicol region gain new knowledge and skills that will help them be prepared and more resilient to the impacts of natural hazards,” said USAID Philippines Executive Office Acting Chief Timothy Marlowe.

The BAWP is implemented by the UPLBFI in partnership with the DA’s Regional Field Office 5 (DA-RFO5), Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration, International Research Institute – Columbia University, Central Bicol State University, Bicol University College of Agriculture and Forestry, and the local governments of Camarines Sur, Albay, Nabua, Buhi, and Polangui.

“Preparedness is much better and cheaper than response, and through the Bicol Agri-Water Project, farmers are now better prepared for the future,” DA-RFO5 Regional Executive Director Dr. Elena De Los Santos said.

First Published: subicbaynews.net/

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SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — Officials of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) decried on Wednesday the filing of complaints by Chairman Martin B. Diño against SBMA officials, calling it a “desperation move” by the latter in a bid to retain his post at the Subic agency.

Diño, who is engaged in a power struggle with SBMA Administrator & CEO Wilma T. Eisma, had reportedly named five SBMA officials in the case he filed before the Office of the Ombudsman for graft, grave misconduct, serious dishonesty and grave abuse of authority.

However, officials of the SBMA dismissed the charges as just another attempt by the beleaguered official to silence the growing clamor among both private and public sectors in Subic for him to leave the SBMA.

“We have yet to receive a copy of the complaint, but the initial information we have is that Chairman Diño filed a complaint against five of our managers,” Eisma said, adding that the filing “smacks of desperation, a move to make noise.”

Eisma noted that anyone can file a complaint before the Ombudsman, which investigates and prosecutes government officials accused of crimes. “But why resort to that, when as SBMA chairman he can order an investigation and settle this issue within the organization?” Eisma said.

“Chairman Diño often speaks about President Duterte’s supposed order for him to bring Subic to greater heights, but look at what he’s doing. He wants to stay in Subic, but he’s trying to hurt some SBMA officials and in the process destroys the image of the agency and the Subic Bay Freeport, as a whole,” she added.

Diño has named as respondents in the complaint the following SBMA officials: Deputy Administrator for Administration Ruel John Kabigting; Senior Deputy Administrator for Operations Marcelino Sangui; Ecology Center manager and Regulatory Group head Amethya dela Llana; Financial Planning and Budget Department manager Editha Marzal; and Internal Audit Service Department manager Joel Ea.

However, Eisma said the respondents still have no idea why Diño would file a case against them.

“My fear is that they are simply collateral damage in the ongoing problem we have with the Chairman,” Eisma added.

Diño and Eisma has been at odds since May after the SBMA chairman issued an administrative order creating an oversight task force under his office that Eisma said encroached upon his power and duties as SBMA administrator. The SBMA board of directors likewise said the order infringed on their own oversight functions and warned Diño not to make unilateral decisions that bypass the collegial policy-making body.

Before this, Diño had also quarreled with the OIC-administrator that Malacañang had appointed before Eisma for the same reason: the chairman had wanted to be administrator at the same time, and tried to wrest control of the SBMA management.

Because of this, members of the Concerned SBMA Employees filed an eight-point complaint against Diño before the Office of the Ombudsman on Dec. 28, 2016 for his “abusive actions and conduct unbecoming of a government official, which proved prejudicial to the agency and to the government, as a whole.”

Meanwhile, seven local government executives around the Subic Bay Freeport had expressed support to Eisma in the ongoing leadership tussle and decried Diño for making “a series of inappropriate, unfitting, baseless and disruptive actions” that adversely affected the SBMA.

SBMA Director Benny Antiporda said Diño’s filing of cases against SBMA officials “is symptomatic of his love-hate relationship with Subic.”

Antiporda explained that the filing of charges is the “hate part”, and noted that just last week, “Diño has been going around the media circuit and raving about how the SBMA has broken revenue records.” He also pointed out that before Diño issued glowing press releases about SBMA financial accomplishments, he had described the agency as “on the verge of financial collapse.”

“So that’s how it is—with him everything is fluid and unstable and baseless. You wouldn’t really know when Chairman Diño would love Subic, or when he would start hating it again,” Antiporda added.

First Published: subicbaynews.net

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AboitizPower celebrated its 10th anniversary at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) on July 18, still focused on pursuing its balanced mix strategy while riding on the robust economic growth of the country.

ABOITIZPOWER MARKS 10 YEARS ON THE PSE. (From left) AboitizPower Independent Directors Carlos C. Ejercito and Alfonso A. Uy, AboitizPower President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) Antonio R. Moraza, AboitizPower Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Erramon I. Aboitiz, PSE Chairman Jose T. Pardo, PSE President and CEO Ramon S. Monzon, PSE COO Roel A. Refran, and AboitizPower Executive Vice President and COO-Generation Business Group Emmanuel V. Rubio, among other AboitizPower and PSE officials, lead the bell-ringing ceremony at the PSE Plaza during the opening of trades last July 18 in celebration of AboitizPower’s 10th year as a listed company.

AboitizPower CEO Erramon I. Aboitiz said the company is on track to reaching its target of reaching 4,000 MW in attributable capacity by 2020 while maintaining a healthy portfolio of renewable energy facilities.

“We will continue to push our balanced mix strategy because we believe that the long-term energy security of the country can be solved by balancing sustainability, accessibility, and reliability of power,” Aboitiz said.

Around 32-percent of AboitizPower’s 3,955 MW net sellable capacity at present, come from its geothermal, hydro, and solar power plants.

On the power distribution front, the company will ride on the healthy economic growth in areas served by Visayan Electric Co., Davao Light and Power, Cotabato Light and several economic zones it serves. Combined, the distribution utilities serve around 900,000 customers.

From its IPO price of Php5.80 in 2007 it is now six times its initial price or an equivalent of Php 40.05 per share. This translates to a 28 percent total return to our shareholders compounded annually. Its dividend policy of paying out half of the annual net income is one of the highest dividend yields in the PSE.

“We will remain strategic yet disciplined in our approach towards achieving our growth goals, always mindful of our role in nation building,” Aboitiz said.

The Aboitiz Group’s investments in the power industry started in the early 1900s when it invested in small utilities like Jolo Power and Ormoc Power.

It later acquired Davao Light and Power, Cotabato Light and Power, as well as Visayan Electric. It further expanded after the passage of the EPIRA Law in 2001.

The company built its first power plant, the 1.2-MW Irisan 3, in 1990 through subsidiary Hedcor.

In the next 12 months, the company is set to add more capacity to its balanced portfolio, including the 69-MW Manolo Fortich and 8-MW Maris Canal hydro power plants, as well as the 400-MW Pagbilao 3 and 340-MW Therma Visayas thermal power plants.

First Published: subicbaynews.net

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The U.S. government is partnering with the Philippine government in delivering critical health and education services to civilians who have been affected by the ongoing conflict in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur.

“The United States and the Philippines are longstanding friends, partners and allies,” said U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim. “We will continue to coordinate with the Philippine government on ways to provide relief to families affected by this conflict.”

Water containers donated by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) are distributed to locals affected by the Marawi conflict.

The U.S. government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), provided access to potable water by distributing 12,000 jerry cans (water containers) and 96,000 chlorine tablets to 12,000 families currently staying in evacuation sites in Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, and Iligan City.

USAID is also providing support to help stop the spread of infectious diseases, particularly tuberculosis (TB). With the help of local partners and the Philippine Department of Health, USAID facilitated the delivery of much-needed anti-TB drugs and supplies to evacuation centers, allowing patients to continue their strict medical regimen. Patients with confirmed cases receive free medical treatment from the Philippine government.

USAID is also leveraging one of its ongoing education projects to supply at least 6,000 desks in the temporary learning spaces for displaced children.

USAID supports peace and community development in Mindanao through 25 ongoing projects that improve local governance, strengthen the government’s capacity to deliver services, especially in health and education, and promote civic engagement.

First Published: subicbaynews.net

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