H.K. legislature calls for justice in Philippines hostage crisis+

HONG KONG, Sept.

DOF says peso global bond may alter Q4 debt sales

BY ALBERT CASTRO–> Government may adjust its borrowing for the rest of the year if it raises its maximum target of $1 billion from a planned maiden offer of global peso bonds this year, the national treasurer said on Tuesday. Government is talking to “several” banks before selecting its underwriters for the issue, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima…

Scrap rice subsidies, WB tells gov’t

MANILA, Philippines—The World Bank urged the Aquino administration to finally stop subsidizing rice supposedly meant for poor households as the government continued to pile up huge losses from this program. The foreign lender said the rice subsidies were inefficient and have not benefitted majority of the supposed recipients.

Aquino keener on seeking justice for poor Filipinos than dad’s murder

MANILA, Philippines—The quest for justice in the assassination of former Sen. Benigno Aquino, Jr

Aquino threatens PAL, union with ‘open skies’

MANILA, Philippines—Saying the interest of the greater riding public would be his top priority, President Benigno Aquino III Wednesday warned Philippine Airlines that the government would be forced to allot its flight schedules to other domestic and even foreign airlines in case a strike occurs in the flag carrier. The President told a news…

RP to ask private sector to build airport terminals

MANILA, Philippines—The cash-strapped Philippines said Wednesday it will call on the private sector to help build up to six airport terminals as it bids to boost the country’s finances through increased tourism. With the government needing to create jobs to ease widespread poverty while faced with a huge budget deficit for at least…

Aquino to allot PAL flights to other airlines, in case of strike

MANILA, Philippines — President Aquino warned Philippine Airlines on Wednesday the government would allot its flights to other airlines in case of a strike by workers. The President told a news…

Report: Philippine Muslim rebels brace for war

MANILA, Philippines – Hundreds of Muslim guerrillas have undergone combat training and sought more weapons in the southern Philippines to bolster their military muscle in case planned peace talks with the government falter, a military report said Wednesday. New President Benigno Aquino III and the 11,000-strong Moro Islamic Liberation Front have expressed readiness to resume Malaysian-brokered peace negotiations as early as September after the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan

Tesda gets P700-M scholarship fund

MANILA, Philippines—While downsizing the government budget for next year, President Aquino has committed an allocation of some P700 million to fund the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority’s scholarship program for 2011 even as its new leadership pursues a probe into possible misuse of funds under the past administration, the agency’s chief has bared. Tesda Director…

Exhaust gassing of dogs raises ire in Philippines

AFP and AP, MANILA Dog pounds in the Philippines are being allowed to kill stray dogs with vehicle exhaust fumes, local animal welfare groups said yesterday, a practice they say is cruel and inhumane. The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) and two other groups called for the government to reverse an agricultural department ruling in June that approved the gassing method to kill dogs. “If we need to put…

CBCP calls for safe waste recycling

MANILA, Philippines—An official of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines on Friday urged the government to craft a safe recycling program that would protect poor garbage pickers from harmful and toxic wastes in dump sites. Dubbed as “recycling champions,” scavengers who scour dump sites for their daily source of income must…

2 charged with rice smuggling

MANILA, Philippines—The customs bureau Thursday filed smuggling charges against a customs broker and the officers of two Manila-based companies for allegedly misdeclaring a white rice shipment as mung beans, defrauding the government of more than P10 million in duties and taxes. According to Customs Commissioner Lito Alvarez, ‘there was reason to believe that the technical smuggling activities’ of Plum Blossom Import-Export Food Corp

Palace aware PAL woes beyond salaries of pilots

MANILA, Philippines—Malacañang recognizes that the issues besetting Philippine Airlines go beyond the salaries of pilots who have flown the coop, so to speak. However, presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said the government is not ready to take a more active role in resolving these and would rather watch as things unfold in the ongoing separate talks conducted by Palace officials with PAL management and the pilots. In a news conference Wednesday, Lacierda noted that PAL’s travails is ‘not only limited to the (pilots’) resignations but is apparently a part of a deep-seated problem which has been festering, according to the pilots…

3 senators nix gov’t takeover of PAL

MANILA, Philippines—Senators on Tuesday opposed a state takeover of the flag-carrier Philippine Airlines, pointing out government’s bad record in running private companies. ‘I’m not in favor of that. You know, the government is never good at running private companies,’ Senator Franklin Drilon told reporters.

Fix major education problems first—Nebres

MANILA, Philippines—Ateneo de Manila University president Fr. Bienvenido Nebres has criticized the Aquino administration’s plan to add two more years to basic education, saying the government should focus first on cutting the number of ‘illiterates’ the country produces annually.

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