CHED: Sexual assault incident ‘wake up call’ to review, rationalize security in UP campus

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3

CHAIRMAN Prospero De Vera

III of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) reminded that higher education institutions (HEIs) must remain as safe spaces for their students following the reported sexual assault of a student inside the University of the Philippines-Diliman campus.

“ The UP administration must tap the expertise of the Philippine National Police to identify, track and apprehend all those responsible for this reprehensible act of violence,” De Vera said after receiving confirmation that a young female student of the UPDiliman was sexually assaulted along Ylanan Road inside the UP Campus on Saturday, July 1, 2023. T he victim-survivor is currently under medical care. The assailant remains at large.

“ We extend our deep concern to our victim-survivor. I have asked the University administration to extend all possible assistance to the student and her family at this time of great challenge. I share with the entire UP Community our full support for her and her family in overcoming this difficult traumatic hurdle in their lives and in the longer process of healing,” he said.

D e Vera also instructed UP President Atty. Angelo A. Jimenez and UP Diliman Chancellor Assistant Professor Edgardo Carlo L. Vistan to immediately ensure that all assistance to the victim-survivor is properly and expediently provided.

The UP administrative and security officials must immediately coordinate and allow the proper offices of the PNP to spearhead the investigation and conduct possible pursuit operations,” de Vera added. He also encouraged anyone and everyone who has any information regarding the incident to report to the authorities to aid in the investigation.

The University must spare nothing to ensure that justice is obtained for the victim and her family,” de Vera said, adding that the despicable criminal act is a wake up call for UP to review and rationalize its security and safety policies, including its operational engagement with the PNP and other law enforcement agencies in order to make the UP Community safe and secure.

PBBM housing program 4PH to build 100K houses by next year–DHSUD

THE government is eyeing to complete at least 100,000 constructed housing units under the Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino Housing (4PH) program by next year, according to the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD).

T his as President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. renewed his commitment to address the country’s housing shortage after attending a 4PH site inspection in the City of San Fernando in Pampanga on Monday.

Next year, we think we will be able to deliver more than 100,000 houses,” DHSUD Secretary Jose Rizalino L. Acuzar told reporters in an interview during a site inspection.

H e noted this was based on the estimated completion of some of the ongoing 50 4PH projects nationwide.

O f which, 20 are now undergoing construction, while the rest are either scheduled for bidding or processing.

Cu rrently DHSUD has signed 150 memorandums of understanding (MOU) for the implementation of 4PH in 28 locations nationwide.

A mong the latest additions to the list of 4PH projects are those located in the following three locations in Pampanga: Barangay Del Carmen, Crystal Peak States; Barangay Mandasig, Candaba; and Barangay Sta. Maria, Minalin.

T he three projects, which will have an estimated 91,000 available housing units once completed, will be accorded with amenities such as commercial areas, schools, hospitals and recreational facilities.

Senators press probe into proliferation of online celebrity endorsement scams

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

SENATE probers are poised to mount an inqury into the proliferation of internet scam cases “faking online celebrity endorsements and deceptive social media postings” in dubious advertisements selling assorted unregistered food and drug products.

Paving the way for a thorough probe, Senator Jinggoy Estrada filed Senate Resolution No. 666, citing the risks the scam poses to unsuspecting consumers as he noted “the spread of online marketing materials and impostor pages or accounts promoting unregistered products that promise treatment for various ailments or wellness benefits using the names and pictures of local personalities and celebrities.”

E strada aired a warning that “these advertisements mislead consumers into believing that these celebrities are using and endorsing food and medicinal products that are actually unregistered before the proper health authorities and not yet approved for mass distribution and public consumption.”

T he Senator aired serious concerns that the “barrage of bogus medicinal remedies on social media platforms is viewed and even shared by thousands of consumers, providing them with inaccurate and false information about the efficacy, quality, and safety of food, drugs, and health products,” Estrada said.

Moreover, he pointed out that “the circulation and proliferation of fraudulent online advertisements are ‘clear and blatant violations of the Consumer Act,’ which, the senator notes penalize the dissemination of deceptive and misleading sales promotion practices.”

At the same time, Estrada cited reports on the alleged product endorsements of a popular internist and cardiologist with a huge social media following, regarding a “miracle food” in the form of mixed nuts.

The senator also cited the case of a high-profile physician and public-health expert, whose name and pictures were used to imply his personal endorsement of a product as a cure for diabetes.

There is an urgent need to protect consumers against the consumption of unregistered and potentially harmful food and health products through the strict enforcement of the provisions of the Consumer Act and regulation of fraudulent advertisements on social media platforms,” Estrada stressed.

M oreover, the senator cited “the need to identify and address possible loopholes in the country’s existing laws and regulations, emphasizing the importance of updating their provisions, considering the extensive use of social media platforms and cyberspace, as well as the alarming use of maliciously manipulated images, spliced videos, and fabricated statements in the promotion of food and health products.”

Almost on track UNDER the 4PH program, the government is eyeing to construct a million housing units annually from 2022 to 2028 or a total of 6.5 million new housing units before the end of the Marcos administration. Many Filipinos will benefit for sure from these comfortable, affordable and safe housing units,” Marcos said in his speech during the event. DHSUD said it is “almost on track” in reaching its 4PH targets due to the challenges it faced in implementing the program, which includes securing the necessary land and funding for it.

M arcos said his administration continues to coordinate with the private sector, local government units, and other stakeholders to address these issues. This is to ensure we will be able to extend 4PH [housing] to more Filipinos,” the President said.

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