Download 04 March 2013

NEWSCAPS
March 4, 2013
(POLITICAL)
I. SABAH CLASHES
 A total of 12 combatants—six Malaysian policemen and six
members of the Sulu “royal army”—were confirmed killed
following Saturday evening’s ambush-cum-clash in Semporna,
Malaysian police Inspector General Ismail Omar confirmed.
 The death toll in the Sabah violence could still increase as more
Malaysian security forces arrive in at least three areas—Lahad
Datu, Semporna and Kunak—and hunt down the “intruders”.
II. KILLED FOLLOWERS OF THE SULTAN OF SULU
 Abraham Idjirani, spokesman for the sultanate of Sulu, said that
an Islamic religious leader and his four sons were killed in the
fighting in the seaside village of Simunul in Semporna town, 300
kilometers from Tanduao village in Lahad Datu, the site of a 3week-old standoff between Malaysian security forces and a group
of followers of Sultan Jamalul Kiram III.
III. FILIPINO BEATEN TO DEATH BY ANGRY VILLAGERS
 A middle-aged Filipino man who had an M-16 rifle and who was
reportedly involved in the ambush of Malaysian police forces, was
beaten to death by angry residents of a village in Semporna early
Sunday, radio reports from Sabah said.
IV. SULTAN OPEN TO TALKS BUT NOT TO SURRENDER
 Sultan of Sulu Jamalul Kiram III said that he remained open to
talks with the government on a peaceful solution to the Sabah
crisis, but rejected President Aquino’s call to his armed followers
to surrender without conditions.
 As of early afternoon Sunday, no official emissary from the
Aquino administration had gotten in touch with the family.
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V. PH HUMANITARIAN, CONSULAR TEAM IN SABAH
 A Philippine humanitarian and consular team is now in Lahad
Datu in Sabah and working to get access to the members of the
so-called Sulu “royal army’’.
 The Department of Foreign Affairs said that the Philippine
Ambassador to Malaysia J. Eduardo Malaya and Foreign
Undersecretary Jose Brillantes met with Royal Malaysian Police
Inspector General Tan Sri Ismail Omar in Lahad Datu to inform
them an embassy team was in Lahad Datu in a humanitarian and
consular mission to Filipinos affected there.
VI. MNLF ON OIC AND UN INTERVENTION IN SABAH
 As violence spread in Sabah, the Organization of Islamic
Cooperation (OIC) and the United Nations were urged to
intervene and initiate negotiations between Malaysia and the
Sultanate of Sulu.
 The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), which issued the
call, however, said that the Philippine government should be
excluded from the negotiations. MNLF Chief Nur Misuari also
urged Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to stop sending
more troops to Sabah and “tone down your voice.”
VII. 289 FILIPINOS
ZAMBOANGA
DEPORTED
FROM
SABAH
ARRIVE
IN
 At least 289 Filipinos arrived in Zamboanga from Sabah early
Sunday after they were deported by Malaysian authorities. The
deportation occurred amid the “homecoming” of the followers of
the Sultan of Sulu to Sabah.
 Jamila Arasid, head of the Social Welfare Department Western
Mindanao’s Processing Center for Displaced Persons, said that
among those who arrived at around 1:00 AM Sunday were
women and children on a commercial vessel from Sandakan, on
the east coast of Sabah. But Arasid clarified that the deportation
had nothing to do with the tension in Lahad Datu.
VIII. SEN. ARROYO AS THRIFTIEST LEGISLATOR
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 Last-term Senator Joker Arroyo is leaving a legacy as the
thriftiest legislator for 20 straight years when it comes to spending
taxpayer’s money. Statistics from the Commission on Audit
(COA) showed that Arroyo has retained the title of being the
country’s thriftiest senator in the 15th Congress for spending a
total of P31.687 million in 2011.
IX. TEAM PNOY ON SABAH ISSUE
 The Liberal Party-led coalition Team PNoy downplayed fears that
the bloody encounter in Sabah would weaken the administration
candidates’ chances of winning.
X. ESTRADA ON LP AS A BUNCH OF TURNCOATS
 Former President Joseph Estrada described the administration
Liberal Party (LP) as a bunch of “balimbings” or political turncoats
led by Sen. Franklin Drilon. Estrada said that Drilon, now
campaign manager of the administration senatorial slate Team
PNoy, used to be a staunch supporter of former President Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo.
XI. PRO-WOMEN CANDIDATES
 Sen. Pia Cayetano, Chairperson of the Senate Committee on
Women and Family Relations, urged voters to support candidates
with a “clear pro-women agenda,” on the global observance of
March as International Women’s Month.
XII. CHURCH DEFIANCE ON REMOVAL OF RH POSTERS
 Only the Vatican can order the Diocese of Bacolod to remove its
controversial tarpaulin on the façade of San Sebastian Cathedral
with the list of senatorial candidates dubbed as Team Buhay and
Team Patay. The lawyer of the diocese said, “Since the tarpaulin
is on Church grounds, only the bishop will say when they shall be
removed.”
XIII. WB: CCT PROGRAM IMPROVED FILIPINO KIDS’ NUTRITION
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 The government’s conditional cash transfer (CCT) program,
popularly known as the Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps),
has significantly improved the nutritional status of poor Filipino
children, according to a recent World Bank (WB) study. WB social
protection specialist Junko Onishi said that the 4Ps program has
reduced severe stunting among poor children aged six to 36
months.
XIV. LEYTE LANDSLIDE
 Rescuers retrieved last night the body of one of the nine workers
who were missing following a landslide inside the geothermal
complex of the Energy Development Corp. (EDC) in Kananga
town, Leyte.
XV. CLIMATE CHANGE COVENANT
 Laguna Rep. Danilo Ramon Fernandez, Chairman of the House
Committee on Ecology, is urging President Aquino and Congress
to adopt the 1st Malolos Green Covenant signed last year by
heads of local government leagues as part of the government’s
blueprint to combat the adverse effects of climate change.
 The covenant provides for the yearly public recognition of best
working practices through the establishment of the “Climate
Change Awards.”
XVI. MANDATORY DRUG-TESTING FOR COLLEGIATE ATHLETES
 The anti-narcotics agency called today for a mandatory drugtesting covering all collegiate athletes after two basketball players
of a university in Metro Manila were caught in possession of dried
marijuana, a prohibited substance.
 Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General
Arturo Cacdac Jr. said that there is a need for a more systematic
drug-testing program for all the athletes in the country.
XVII. DELAYED ARRIVAL OF PH WARSHIP
 The arrival of the BRP Ramon Alcaraz, the second warship
acquired by the Philippines from the United States, has been
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moved to August due to the need to conduct more training for its
crew.
(ECONOMY)
I. SWS SURVEY ON FILIPINO OPTIMISM
 Most Filipinos remain optimistic about their personal prospects
and the economy, with an end-2012 Social Weather Stations
(SWS) survey scoring sentiment for the year ahead as still "high"
and "very high," respectively.
 The December 8-11 poll found 37% of the respondents expecting
their lives to improve in 2013, outnumbering the 8% who said
things would get worse and bringing the net score to +29, up two
points from August. Net personal optimism "has been ‘high’ to
‘very high’ since September 2009," the SWS said.
II. PH OLIGARCHY
 Optimism is soaring that the Philippines is finally becoming an
Asian tiger economy, but critics caution a tiny elite that has long
dominated is amassing most of the new wealth while the poor
miss out.
 “I think it’s obvious to everyone that something is structurally
wrong. The oligarchy has too much control of the country’s
resources,” Cielito Habito, an Inquirer columnist and a respected
former economic planning secretary said.
III. PH POPULATION BOOM AS NEW KIND OF ‘PEOPLE POWER’
 The Philippines is enjoying a new kind of "people power" with a
booming population ensuring a steady labor force, robust
consumption and resilient flow of remittances, the Bank of
America (BOFA) Merrill Lynch said.
 The Philippines has the highest fertility rate in the region, with an
average of 3.1 children born per woman. This has led to a
Philippine labor force that is estimated to grow by 31.3% from
2010 to 2020, also the highest in Asia.
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IV. NEDA: CCT PROGRAM PROVING TO BE POVERTY BUSTER
 The Aquino administration has succeeded in its goal of improving
the spending of poor households on health and education with
the help of the government’s Conditional Cash-Transfer (CCT)
Program, the National Economic and Development Authority
(NEDA) has reported.
 Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said that
compared to non-beneficiaries, the poor households covered by
the program are now spending 36 percent more for their
children’s education and 33 percent more for basic medical costs.
V. FITCH TEAM ‘IMPRESSED’ WITH REFORMS
 Debt watcher Fitch Ratings is "impressed" with reforms
implemented by the Aquino administration but wants these
sustained beyond the current government’s term. Government
officials who met with a visiting Fitch team last month said that
the ratings firm’s representatives were generally positive.
VI. WORKERS’ MENTAL HEALTH
 At least 35 percent of the country’s workforce both in the
government and private sector are suffering from mental
disturbance, the Department of Health (DOH) said.
 To curb this trend, the DOH-Center for Health Development
(CHD) in the region is advising heads of agencies to let their
employees undergo regular medical examinations to ensure
mental fitness.
VII. DOMESTIC TOURIST TARGET
 The Department of Tourism (DOT) has raised its target of 35.5
million domestic tourists to 56.1 million by 2016 after the tourism
industry observed an uptrend in recreation and travel pursuits
among young professionals and middle-income families following
an improved economy and the Filipino’s higher disposable
income.
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VIII. LGU EXPENDITURES
 The Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) is keeping a
tight rein on expenditures incurred by local government units
(LGUs) as part of the Aquino administration’s effort to achieve
better public financial management, under memorandum circular
No. 22-2013, which reiterates its directive for all local treasurers
to fully disclose specific financial transactions to keep their
constituents informed of how their budget is disbursed and used.
IX. GOVERNMENT TAX EFFORT
 The government’s effort to collect taxes has improved to 12.8
percent of gross domestic product (GDP) last year but still lower
than the 13.3 percent goal, initial data from the Department of
Finance (DOF) showed.
X. METROBANK RESEARCH ON BETTER TRADE PROSPECTS
 The projected slight improvement in the global economy is
expected to result in better trade prospects this year, Metrobank
Research, the research arm of Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co.,
said.
 It said that the government is targeting a 10-percent export
growth, which may be attainable should recovery be sustained in
major markets. It, however, warned that downside risks, such as
softening demand for electronics and lower forecasted volume for
high-value agricultural products, might dampen growth.
XI. AYALA LAND DEVELOPMENTS
 Listed property firm Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) is looking to sustain
last year’s pace of project openings with four new retail
developments worth P7 billion lined up for 2013.
XII. NEW MARKETS FOR BEEF AND PORK EXPORTS
 The Philippines is eyeing to export beef and pork products to new
markets this year in a bid to improve livestock and poultry raisers’
income. The country may export beef to Indonesia and pork to
Papua New Guinea.
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XIII. P900 MILLION FOR CORN
 The government has allocated around P900 million this year for
the mechanization of corn farms and the provision of post-harvest
facilities to improve the country’s corn production.
(END)
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