Love drive feeds 200 poor people
Aquino hopeful Congress will pass all priority bills PAGE 2
Recruitment agencies cry foul vs baseless allegations PAGE 4
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2015 calendar Inside
La Vivienda Grilled Shawarma in Zamboanga City
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POEA rings bell on GoWest Jobs
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REBELS SLAM AQUINO PEACE ADVISER
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ommunist rebels have accused a senior government official of muddling efforts to restart stalled peace negotiations with the Aquino government. Daniel Ibarra, a spokesman for the New People’s Army, said presidential peace adviser Teresita Deles is trying to scuttle the resumption of the talks by peddling lies and black propaganda against the rebel group. Ibarra said Deles has strongly accused the NPA of murdering an army officer and 2 others during an ambush on December 29 in Compostela Valley’s Mabini town and breaking a yuletide cease-fire. “Indeed, presidential peace adviser Teresita Deles is standing on feeble ground when she qualified the December 29 ambush as a breach of the GPH’s (Government of the Philippines) unilateral truce. She peddled such a falsehood to discredit the revolutionary movement
in an attempt to scuttle the resumption of the GPHNDF peace negotiations and further muddle the substantive issues that should be resolved in the peace talks,” he said. There was no immediate statement from Deles, who heads the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process. Ibarra also criticized the Eastern Mindanao Command and the 10th Infantry Division of covering up the true situation on the ground that led to the killing of First Lieutenant Ronald Bautista, Private First Class Albert Amor and militiaman Renel Baluca. Lieutenant Genera Aurelio Baladad, chief of the Eastern Mindanao Command, said the three were travelling ona a motorcycle in the village called Candinuyan when rebels ambushed them. He claimed that all of them were in civilian clothes and unarmed, and on their way to visit their families when the rebels ambushed them. Baladad said the rebels
even stripped the dead of their clothes and belongings before escaping in the hinterlands with the victims’ motorcycle. But Ibarra denied this and said the rebels recovered a gun and a fragmentation grenade from the
‘Wild, Wild West’ in Maguindanao
Andal Ampatuan, Sr. (Mindanao Examiner photo)
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i o l e n c e erupted in the troubled province of Maguindanao in southern Philippines following simultaneous attacks on the mansions of the former provincial governor and his son in Shariff Aguak town, officials said. Officials said gunmen sprayed the mansions of Andal Ampatuan and Zaldy Ampatuan with auto-
ARMM
matic weapons fire and wounding a civilian in the latest wave of political violence in the province. No individual or group claimed responsibility for the drive-by shootings on the mansions of Andal and Zaldy. The raid occurred following recent rocket attacks on the house of rival Shariff Aguak Mayor Maroph Ampatuan and his father Akmad, a former mayor of Datu
Salibo town. One civilian, Ali Dimaludin, was also injured in the attacks. Officials, citing intelligence reports, have tagged Tamano Mamalapat, a for mer rebel commander of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, as behind the attacks on Maroph and his father. The MILF signed a peace accord with Manila last year. The rocket attacks on Maroph and Akmad’s houses were believed connected to politics after father and son turned their back on the Ampatuan patriarch and his sons and other family members who are accused of murdering 58 people, including 32 journalists and media workers in Maguindanao in 2009. Just last month, gunmen also ambushed Akmad’s convoy and wounding him and two of his bodyguards in Guindulungan town, also in Maguindanao. Continue to page 7
Southern Mindanao
Davao
slain Bautista, who headed some 80 soldiers belonging to the 71st Infantry Battalion in Candinuyan on the day he was killed. “Bautista was not returning home to reunite with his family during the Christmas truce in Bohol,
as claimed by the military spin doctors, but like his men, was armed with handgun and grenade when he was ambushed by the people’s militia. Bautista and his companions were not preparing for holiday break, but were geared towards full combat operations in the villages of Palali, Mascareg and Linaw and Darot.” “Bautista and his troops manned a military detachment in the village of Anitapan to conduct combat operations and witchhunting of peasant leaders in Palali, Panamin and Mascareg, even during the period of GPH truce declaration and Christmas holidays,” Ibarra said. He said the attack was part of the guerrilla war of the masses campaign to foil the sinister plan of the 71st Infantry Battalion and the 10th Infantry Division to impose no man's land in Mabini town, specifically in the villages of Darot, Linaw, Mascareg, Palali, Manasa, Anitapan, Panamin and Candinuyan where Austra-
lian miner One Asia Resources is planning to operate. “One Asia Resources is one of the big foreign mining corporations that are financially backing up the 71st Infantry Battalion triad operations of noncombat, intelligence and combat activities in order to suppress the people’s resistance to large-scale mining and human rights abuses. One Asia Resources is hell-bent in pushing through with its exploration and exploitation in the area this year,” Ibarra said. “Under the deceptive cover of a GPH monthlong ceasefire, the ongoing deployment, combat manoeuvre, build-up and continuing Peace and Development Outreach Program operations of the 71st Infantry Battalion and 10th Infantry Division are actually clearing to pave the way for the operation of Australianowned One Asia Resources,” he added. Continue to page 7
ARMM sees more investments in 2015 COME P1 billion of new investments is expected to pour in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao this year and among these are in the field of biomass power generation, mining, oil depot and agriculture related projects such as banana, oil palm and buckwheat plantations, according to lawyer Ishak Mastura, Chairman of the Regional Board of Investments. Mastura expressed optimism that they will meet the 2015 investments target.He said aside from the continuous effort of the national government to pursue peace and development in Mindanao through the Bangsamoro Basic Law, the region is also an emerging investment destination in the Philippines. “The region has about 500,000 hectares of available land potential for oil palm, coconut, corn, banana, rubber and other crops. It is also not affected by typhoons
Atty. Ishak Mastura and floods which make it conducive for agri-investments,” Mastura said. However, as a cautionary note, Mastura said investors must get local reputable partners to mitigate investment risks and must see to it that there is social acceptability of their invest-
Western Mindanao
Cebu
ment projects. He said investors in the region must do due diligence on land tenure or land ownership if they engage in plantation projects in order to avoid future problems regarding questionable land titles or land tenure. Continue to page 7
Manila
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Davao tribe benefits from agricultural program DAVAO CITY - Some 1,000 cacao and coffee beans were planted recently by the Department of Agriculture in Davao City in southern Philippines during a ceremonial launch of the project that will benefit a local tribe. Mayor Rodrigo Duterte graced the ceremony held at the Indigenous Peoples Women’s Organic Village at Malamboon Elementary School in the village of Malabog as part of the agency's Gender and Development Program. More than 300 members of the Ata-Manobo tribe joined the program which was also attended by Undersecretary for Special Concer ns Bernadette Puyat. Puyat told the participants that the agency will continue to monitor
the project in the area as well as provide interventions for the village to ensure the success of the program. "Babalik at babalik po kami para masigurado naming naimplemento natin yung mga proyekto," Puyat said. Duterte also pledged to allocate P10 million pesos for coffee plantation and production in the village of Malabog. Bong Año, the regional coordinator for Gender and Development Program, also said that the event would jump-start several projects from the agriculture sector, including a plan for inland aquaculture and the establishment of demonstration farm in Malabog. Tribe leader Datu Generoso Baon, who also benefited from the pro-
gram, praised the agency for helping them and swore to take good care of the interventions given by the agriculture sector. The IP Women Organic Village Project is a typical rural development initiative spearheaded by the agency to help raise the capacities of women in agriculture especially in far flung areas. Under the project, women take the lead in the entire process of human and community development which includes cacao production. The project also promotes an ecologicallysound and balance biodiversified and integrated farming system with preference on organic cacao production, vegetable natural farming production, livestock production and in-land fish farming. (Mindanao Examiner)
Aquino hopeful Congress will pass all priority bills MANILA - The Aquino administration expressed optimism the Senate and the House of Congress will pass all its priority bills this year, a government spokesman said. "Umaasa ang pamahalaan na hindi bababa sa 18 sa 29 na priority legislative agenda na inihain ng Pangulo at ng administrasyon sa Kongreso noong nakaraang taon ang pormal na maipapasa ng Senado at ng Kamara," Secretary Herminio Coloma, told state radio Radyo ng Bayan. He said among the important bills is the Bangsamoro Basic Law. "Isa sa mga panukalang batas na ito ang Bangsamoro Basic
Law na siyang magbibigay daan upang maitatag ang Bangsamoro Transitional Assembly bago idaos ang halalan para sa mga opisyal ng Bangsamoro Political Entity sa taong 2016," he said. Coloma said the government is also proposing to amend some existing laws, including the Build-Operate-Transfer, Road Right of Way for the infrastructure projects, and the shipping industry's Cabotage. "Ibig din ng pamahalaan na ganap na maisabatas ang Rationalization of Fiscal Incentives, Rationalization of the Mining Fiscal Regime, Tax Incentives Management and Transparency Act, Antitrust Act, National Land Use Act, at ang Strategic
Trade Management Act," Coloma said. Coloma said the government is similarly prioritizing the passing of the Customs Modernization Act which is included in the fiscal reform package, and the proposed enactment into law of the designation of the Philippine maritime zone, and archipelagic sea lanes, and the delineation of specific forest limits of public domain. "Nais din ng pamahalaan na palakasin ang sistemang panghustisya ng bansa sa pamamagitan ng pagsasabatas ng Whistleblowers Protection Act at ang pagpapatatag ng Witness Protection Program," Coloma said. (Mindanao Examiner)
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UP Jambangan Summit 2015 successful in Zamboanga City THE UNIVERSITY of the Philippines Jambangan (UPJ) held a regional competition in Zamboanga Peninsula dubbed as “UP Jambangan Summit 2015”. With the theme, “EXPLORE: Recognizing Educational Opportunities to Optimize Youth’s Potential towards Regional Development”, UPJ said the recently concluded summit was successful. It was held at the Western Mindanao State University and par-
ticipated by different high schools students all over Zamboanga Peninsula. They gathered together to battle wits and talents to bring pride and honor to their school, UPJ said. The two-day summit, in partnership with the Mindanao Examiner Regional Newspaper, consisted of a series of contests - Jambangan Quiz Bee, On-the-spot Essay Writing Contest, and Poster Making Contest.
And the COUPLE, which stands for Career Orientation and UP Life Experience. UPJ said the summit was aimed as providing a good opportunity for a healthy competition and an avenue for camaraderie among students. It also promotes UP education, its admission process, courses offered and their overviews, and tips of how to survive college in UP. (Mindanao Examiner)
Love drive feeds 200 poor people ZAMBOANGA CITY – Some 200 street people and war refugees benefited from a small love drive launched by the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner in Zamboanga City in southern Philippines. Employees distributed late Thursday afternoon food packs – chicken spring roll, steamed rice and bottled water, and
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small cash donation – to over 100 internally displaced persons at the Joaquin Enriquez Memorial Sports Complex. The distribution of food packs was made possible through the coordination of IDP leaders Gammar A. Hassan and Ibrahim Ahmad, and other parentleaders of Zone-D and staff of the Camp Coordination
and Camp Management Welfare Desk and the Department of Social Welfare and Development. On December 24, the community newspaper also handed out cash and food to street children in Zamboanga as part of its social commitment and annual tradition of “paying it forward.” (Mindanao Examiner)
Internally displaced persons, who are victims of 2013 rebel attack in Zamboanga City, line up inside a thatched hut at the Joaquin Enriquez Memorial Sports Complex where the Mindanao Examiner Regional Newspaper distributed food packs and donated small cash to camp leaders.
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Relieving the Philippines’ overcrowded jails MANILA - The Supreme Court of the Philippines has ordered 286 people to be released from jail because they had already spent the same amount of time behind bars as the minimum penalties for their alleged offenses. The court’s long-overdue action is designed to address the country’s serious problem of lengthy pretrial detention and is part of what the court called its “Judgment Day” program that, along with “Justice on Wheels” and “Hustisyeah!,” aims to decongest the Philippines’ notoriously overcrowded detention facilities. The Supreme Court deserves credit for taking the initiative to address the problem of lengthy pretrial detention in the Philippines. But the release of these detainees is nothing more than a symbolic drop in the bucket in comparison to the
estimated more than 70,000 people currently in detention awaiting trial for often extremely lengthy periods. Many spend decades in jail waiting for their case to go before a judge. A June 2014 report by the International Center for Prison Studies noted that the Philippines has the highest number of pretrial detainees in Southeast Asia and the sixth highest in the world. Prolonged pretrial detention violates international human rights law that the Philippines has agreed to uphold. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, for instance, states that everyone detained on a criminal charge is “entitled to trial within a reasonable time or release.” Prolonged pretrial detention is often the result of the Philippines’ inefficient judicial system, which is hobbled by corruption, clogged dockets, and an in-
adequate number of court facilities and judges to oversee them. Police and prosecutors often file charges despite inadequate preliminary evidence or an absence of probable cause. The passage of the country’s tough anti-drug law in 2002 resulted in a sharp rise in arrests that have added to the pressure on the country’s already overcrowded detention facilities. Reducing the large numbers of people in lengthy pretrial detention will require more than occasional mass-releases of individuals whose trial was overdue. Instead it will require much more wide-reaching justice system reform to address the systemic issues that create such injustices. The Supreme Court has highlighted the problem but now it is up to the government to step up and take serious action. (Carlo Conde Human Rights Watch)
Palace defends hikes in mass transport system
Recruitment agencies cry foul vs baseless allegations MANILA – Legitimate recruitment agencies in the Philippines have accused the government of witch hunting following a sudden crackdown on those believed substituting labor contracts of Filipino workers abroad. The crackdown has led to the closure of many recruitment agencies even without the benefit of a thorough investigation. And this has severely affected many overseas Filipino workers or OFWs, who were left without legal and social protection from their recruitment agency. And the arbitrary action of Philippine Overseas Employment Agency and the Department of Labor and Employment in cancelling permit of recruitment agencies has only worsened the situation of OFWs. Recruitment agencies have been accused also of being in cahoots with foreign employers in contract substitution, an accusation strongly denied by the Association of Recruitment Agencies of the Philippines. It said recruitment agencies has become the “whipping boy” of the government’s failure to address the persistent problems of OFWs, especially those in the Middle East where over 100 on death row and more than 7,000
still languishing in jails. Distress and repatriated OFWs are mostly cases of contract substitution and labor malpractices committed by erring employers and not by recruitment agencies. The problem starts when foreign employers do not honor the recruitment agency’s contract for many reasons and one of them is to avoid paying the correct salaries and allowances and other fringe benefits stipulated in the contract. Many hired or deployed OFWs had been asked by their employer and even forced to sign a new contract upon arrival at their job site. The Association of Recruitment Agencies of the Philippines said the original employment contract is intended to protect OFWs labor rights as set forth in the terms and conditions of their employment. It said recruitment agencies are like an “umbilical cord” that connects the OFWs to their families, and to the government because of their role in the deployment of workers and their welfare and also in nation building. Raisonel Datu Magangcong, president of the Association of Recruitment Agencies of the Philippines, earlier pledged to help Filipinos who are lan-
guishing in jails abroad by funding training for diplomats, lawyers and social workers from the ranks of Bangsamoro professionals. The fund would also help to support and establish legal and humanitarian assistance for overseas Filipino workers in jails. Magangcong even wrote a letter to the leadership of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which has signed a peace accord with Manila, and extended the offer. Magangcong also called on fellow Muslims to help the Aquino government save the lives of Filipinos in death rows in the Middle East. He urged the government to allocate more funding for additional embassy personnel and consular offices in the Middle East, especially in countries where there are large presence of Filipino workers, to ensure their welfare. He said the association will also sign a memorandum of agreement with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority for competency standardization of embassies' personnel. It said the partnership aims to raise competent delivery of the welfare of OFWs and effective rapport with employers and government of the host country. (Salman Ali)
MANILA - The Aquino administration has strongly defended its decision to hike train fares in Metropolitan Manila, saying it may not be popular, but it must be done. The increase in fares of Metro Rail Transit Line 3 and Light Rail Transit Lines 1 and 2 was also criticized by various groups and commuters. "This is not a popular decision insofar as the MRTriding passengers are concerned, but we are doing this because this is the right thing to do," Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said. Lacierda emphasized that the government has not completely cut its subsidy for the mass transport system, but has merely reduced the subsidy from P12 billion last year to P10 billion this year. "We did not take away the subsidy. The subsidy is still there," he said. He said President Benigno Aquino has already explained that the subsidy for the MRT and LRT fares needs to be reduced so that the government could allocate its resources to regions that do not benefit from the MRT and LRT service. "So, of the P2 billion that we can save, we are going to allocate the resources to
other areas like Visayas and Mindanao," Lacierda said. He said the increased fares are still lower than airconditioned or regular bus fares. He assured the public that the government will continue to improve the services of the mass transport system. "We can assure the MRTriding passengers that rehabilitation is forthcoming. Rehabilitation has been planned this year. We are going to improve the services of the MRT," he said. But Migrante Middle East said overseas Filipino workers and their families are also opposing the hike in fares and branding it as antipeople. "For OFWs and their dependents, the MRT and LRT fare hike is not a good New Year gift from an anti-people like Aquino and the government's capitalist partners," said the Saudi Arabiabased John Leonard Monterona, the group's regional coordinator. Monterona claimed that OFWs and their dependents will be badly affected by the fare hike because thousands of OFWs have children studying in Metro Manila. "Students of OFWs are
also riding the MRT and LRT, thus a fare hike would mean an additional expense and an added burden to the OFWs, who are usually bread winners," Monterona said. He noted that those OFWs whose income ranges from P15,000 to P20,000 a month will feel the burden of the fare increase. "Most of them are household service workers and construction workers in the Middle East and Asia Pacific. The Aquino administration’s Public-Private Partnership scheme should be junked as it only overburdens the public and the millions of ordinary people in favor of its big capitalist partners whose aim is to gain and gain huge profits at the expense of the ordinary people," he said. Monterona said that affiliate organizations of Migrante in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia are preparing protest activities in support of the anti-MRT and LRT fare hike movement in the home front. "We will do our share in opposing and exposing the anti-people character of BS Aquino and his regime in the international community," Monterona said.(Mindanao Examiner)
Jan. 12-18, 2015
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La Vivienda Grilled Shawarma in Zamboanga City (Food Review) LA VIVIENDA Grilled Shawarma, owned by the 69-year old veteran cook Rudy Bravo, at San Jose Road in Zamboanga City is surely a place that I will visit very often after I tasted their delicious Shawurma or Shawarma - a Levantine Arab meat preparation similar to Taco where beef or chicken, or lamb or veal, are placed on a pointed rod for holding meat over a fire, or grilled on a pan. The small road-side restaurant offers a wide variety of Arabic and Mexican Shawarma, and a fusion of Filipino-style Shawarma, omelette, escalope, burgers and mouth-watering
sauces from barbecue to curry and their super-flaming “volcanic” chili oil and the lesser hot, but still super spicy “dynamite” chili and garlic oil which will surely make you sweat because of its very hot, hot and hot, but deliciously superb taste made from a blend of chilies and other herbs and spices. The five-year old La Vivienda - which literally means “home” or “dwelling” in Spanish - continues to draw and attract a steady influx of diners because of its good-tasting, clean and quality, delicious Shawarma at a very affordable prices ranging from
P50 to P90. The humble owner says the secret of his Shawarma house is the high quality of the meat he uses and of course, the cleanliness of his great tasting Sharwarma and his fresh dough grilled to perfection, and sauces that go along with it. The great service of the food attendants adds up to the assets of the La Vivienda. I highly recommend La Vivienda Grilled Shawarma. Hurry, go and visit La Vivienda and don’t forget your handkerchief and get ready for that “dynamite” taste! (Food review by Al Jacinto for Mindanao Examiner Regional Newspaper)
Raisonel Datu Magangcong, president of the Association of Recruitment Agencies in the Philippines-OFW Foundation, leads campaign to fight human trafficking in his country and has circulated a manifesto supporting global crusade to end slavery.
Recruiters in Philippines lead campaign vs. human trafficking, modern-day slavery THE ASSOCIATION of Recruitment Agencies in the Philippines is leading a campaign to fight human trafficking and has circulated a manifesto supporting global crusade to end slavery. Raisonel Datu Magangcong, president of the Association of Recruitment Agencies in the Philippines-OFW Foundation, is leading the campaign and has urged all members to also support the Papal visit in the country. Magangcong has started a signature campaign among recruitment agencies in support of the historical visit of Pope Francis from January 15 to 19 in Manila and Tacloban City, and in Palo town in Leyte province where he will say mass. The Pope is also expected to mingle with typhoon survivors. Magangcong said they will also appeal the intercession of the Pope in addressing the sad plight of jailed overseas Filipino workers, especially those in death rows, in the Middle East. In supporting the global campaign against human trafficking and modern-day slavery, Magangcong signed the “Declaration with the Global Freedom Network: United to end slavery.” The campaign is “committed to the dignity and freedom that is the birthright of all humankind.” The Catholic, Anglican, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, and Ortho-
dox leaders signed the Joint Declaration of Religious Leaders Against Modern Slavery at the Vatican on World Day for the Abolition of Slavery. The manifesto that Magangcong signed reads: “I will do all within my power to end slavery within my lifetime. Each human being is a free person, whether girl, boy, woman or man and is destined to exist in equality and dignity, free forever.” “Collectively we have the opportunity, awareness, wisdom, innovation and technology to achieve this human and moral imperative. We can be the generation that ends slavery.” World religious leaders have also issued a joint declaration against modern slavery and it reads: “We are gathered here today for a historic initiative to inspire spiritual and practical action by all global faiths and people of good will everywhere to eradicate modern slavery across the world by 2020 and for all time.” “In the eyes of God, each human being is a free person, whether girl, boy, woman or man, and is destined to exist for the good of all in equality and fraternity. Modern slavery, in terms of human trafficking, forced labour and prostitution, organ trafficking, and any relationship that fails to respect the fundamental conviction that all people are equal and have the same freedom and dignity, is a crime against humanity.”
“We pledge ourselves here today to do all in our power, within our faith communities and beyond, to work together for the freedom of all those who are enslaved and trafficked so that their future may be restored. Today we have the opportunity, awareness, wisdom, innovation and technology to achieve this human and moral imperative.” And among those who signed the joint declaration were Pope Francis, Her Holiness Mata Amritanandamayi (Amma), Venerable Bhikkhuni Thich Nu Chan Khong (representing Zen Master Thích Nh?t H?nh), The Most Ven. Datuk K Sri Dhammaratana, Chief High Priest of Malaysia; Rabbi Dr. Abraham Skorka, Rabbi Dr. David Rosen, Dr. Abbas Abdalla Abbas Soliman, Undersecretary of State of Al Azhar Alsharif (representing Mohamed Ahmed El-Tayeb, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar). And Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi alModarresi, Sheikh Naziyah Razzaq Jaafar, Special advisor of Grand Ayatollah (representing Grand Ayatollah Sheikh Basheer Hussain al Najafi); Sheikh Omar Abboud, Most Reverend and Right Honorable Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury; and His Eminence Metropolitan Emmanuel of France (representing His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew). (Salman Ali)
SUPPORT PEACE IN MINDANAO (Shawarma by La Vivienda and restaurant owner Rudy Bravo. Photos by Al Jacinto for Mindanao Examiner Regional Newspaper)
Rebels slam Aquino peace adviser Continued fr om page 1 from He said the ambush was a legitimate military action in retaliation to the long list of human rights violations by the military. “It is a legitimate politico-military operation by the masses that have long suffered and bore the brunt of fascism and economic dislocation as a result of foreign large-scale mining,” he said. Ibarra warned that NPA rebels would launch more at-
tacks against government troops who are acting as private armies of foreign and large-scale mining operators in the region. The NPA has been fighting for many decades now for the establishment of a communist state in the country.Government peace talks with the NPA collapsed in 2004 after rebels accused then President Gloria Arroyo of reneging on several agree-
ments, among them the release of all political prisoners in the country and the removal of the terrorist tag on the Communist Party of the Philippines and its political wing, the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, and the NPA. Manila also suspended the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees after the peace talks failed. (Mindanao Examiner)
Wild, Wild West’ in Maguindanao Continued fr om page 1 from Ampatuan’s convoy was heading to Shariff Aguak when gunmen attacked the politician’s vehicle. No individual or group claimed responsibility for the attack, but Maguindanao has been the center of violence in recent months following a spate of
gun attacks and killings perpetrated by rebels and other armed groups actively operating in the troubled province. Also in December, an unidentified assailant also fired a rifle grenade on the mansion of Shariff Aguak Mayor Zahara Upam Ampatuan, who was re-
cently implicated in the massacre. Zahara has denied the charges against her, but has gone into hiding because of threats to her life. The attack on Zahara’s mansion caused little damage as the grenade exploded on the sprawling compound. (Mindanao Examiner)
Where are the fire trucks?
MANILA - House Deputy Minority Leader Arnel Ty has urged the Department of the Interior and Local Government to make public the list of cities and municipalities that allegedly received 117 new fire trucks under the modernization program of the Bureau of Fire Protection. “Congress gave the DILG a total of P1 billion for the acquisition of the 117 fire trucks. People are starting to ask where these new (fire trucks) vehicles are. They haven’t seen
the trucks responding to fire emergencies. When there are blazes, people don’t see the new trucks in action as first responders. What they see right away are the trucks of the Filipino-Chinese Volunteer Fire Brigades,” Ty said. Rep. Terry Ridon has previously questioned Item No. 5 in the P22.4-billion supplemental national budget for 2015, which gives the DILG another P199.1 million for the acquisition of 33 new fire trucks for the Autonomous
Journalist killed
A LONE gunman shot dead a female journalist in a daring attack last week in Bataan province just outside Manila in the Philippines, media groups reported. Both the National Press Club (NPC) and the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) condemned the
murder of 48-year old Nerlita Ledesma, who was writing for Abante, one of the country’s biggest newspapers. The motive of the murder is still unknown. “We condemn the latest attack on another female member of the press, Nerlita T.
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Alan Navales North- South Cotabato Maguindanao, Sultan Kudarat
Richard Suarez Pagadian City Zamboanga del Sur CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Ely Dumaboc/Jun Feliciano Zamboanga Peninsula The Mindanao Examiner Regional Newspaper is published weekly in Mindanao, Philippines. The Mindanao Examiner Television is broadcast in KISMET Cable TV and Pagadian Cable Television Channel 63. Our business and editorial offices are located at Units 15, 3rd Floor, Fair Land Bldg., Nuñez St., Zamboanga City Phone & fax: 062- 9925480 Mobile: 0917-7103642 URL: mindanaoexaminer.com E-mail: mindanaoexaminer@gmail.com
Region in Muslim Mindanao. Ty has asked DILG Secretarty Mar Roxas to make public which local government units obtained the fire trucks. He said the public deserves to know and Roxas ought to satisfy their curiosity. He said Congress authorized the funds for the DILG to procure 34 units of 1,000-gallon fire trucks and 18 units of 2,500-gallon fire trucks, including 65 units of 500-gallon mini-pumpers for the BFP. (Mindanao Examiner) Ledesma, of Balanga City this morning. Nerlie, 48, was gunned down in Barangay Cuyo at 8 a.m. as she prepared to report for work. We demand no less than the capture of her attacker and all those who may have planned the hit,” said NPC president, Joel Egco. He said the attack on Ledesma, who was also local radio personality, is the latest addition to the growing number of journalists who were either maimed or killed under the regime of President Benigno Aquino. “The incident reminds us of last year’s killing of Rubylita Garcia in Cavite province, where police investigators have allegedly bungled their investigation by “inventing” suspects in the murder. Several months after the killing, justice remains elusive for Rubie and members of her family, who are under government protection,” Egco said. “We also lament the fact that the shooting of Nerlie Ledesma, which we consider an affront to press freedom, came a day short of our scheduled dialogue with Justice Secretary Leila De Lima regarding the NPC’s role in the Interagency Task Force on Extrajudicial Killings, including media killings, under Administrative Order 35. Ledesma’s case will be the first to be acted upon as the NPC officially assumes its role and clarifies its tasks in the committee,” he added. NUJP said Ledesma was shot in the village of Tuyo in San Rafael town by a masked man, who escaped on a motorcycle. It said Ledesma was waiting for a ride on her way to work when the gunman shoot her four times in the chest with a .45-caliber pistol. It said 30 journalists had been killed under Aquino’s watch. (Mindanao Examiner)
MAG-INGAT SA FLU o TRANGKASO Ni Dr. Willie T. Ong Kung taglamig, mas lumalakas ang mga virus na nagdadala ng trangkaso o flu. Nagmumula ang mga virus na ito sa pasyenteng may trangkaso. At kapag sila’y umubo, puwedeng malipat ang virus sa mga pangkaraniwang bagay tulad ng mesa, gamit, computer at cellphone. Puwedeng mabuhay ang mga virus na ito ng hanggang 24 oras sa mga kagamitan sa bahay. Mag-ingat at baka mahawa dito. Tips: (1) Lumayo sa mga taong inuubo. Baka malanghap mo ang mga virus na nagmumula sa kanilang lalamunan,
(2) Maghugas ng kamay palagi o mag-alcohol, (3) Huwag muna pumasok sa trabaho o school.
Dr. Willie T. Ong (4) Umiwas sa mga lugar na may maraming tao at baka mahawa, (5) Magsuot ng jacket
kapag malamig, (6) Magdala ng payong para may proteksyon ka sa init ng araw at buhos ng ulan, (7) Magpabakuna ng flu vaccine. Isang beses bawat taon. (8) Magpahinga sa bahay at uminom ng maraming tubig. (9) Subukan ang chicken soup o nilagang manok. (10) Uminom ng paracetamol kapag mataas ang lagnat. Magpa-check up sa doktor. Tandaan: Kailangan ay gumaling ka na pagkaraan ng 3 araw. Kapag may lagnat pa rin, baka ibang sakit na iyan.
ARMM sees more investments in 2015
Continued fr om page 1 from “Since ARMM is home to a large Muslim population, it is being developed as the Halal Hub becoming the production and market based for Halal products and services not only in the country but also in the ASEAN. Infrastructure, logistics, telecommunications and other utilities are already present to support and sustain the growth of large industries in the region however, continuous improvements is a must,” Mastura said. In 2014, he said the re-
gion generated a total of P3.857 billion investment 46% of these projects are invested in biomass renewable energy with total value of P1.773 billion; 31% are projects in nickel mining amounting to P1.198 billion, while P740 million or 19% were agri-based projects. Mastura said the remaining 4% are projects into petroleum product distribution and trading with combined value of P146 million. Out of these investments, 3,422 jobs were created. He said Lamsan Power Corporation is the biggest
investor in 2014 which built a P921 million biomass power plant in Sultan Kudarat town in Maguindanao province and followed by Al Mujahidun Agro Resources and Development, Inc. with P570 million investments and 500 hectare cavendish banana plantation in Ampatuan town also in Maguindanao. Third major investor is SR Languyan Mining Corp. which is into nickel ore mining and quarrying worth P520 million in Languyan town in Tawi-Tawi province. (Mindanao Examiner)
THE PHILIPPINES has warned Filipinos searching for jobs in Canada about fraudulent job offers by an immigration consultancy firm. Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac, of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, also issued an advisory to Filipino job applicants concerning the alleged recruitment activities of immigration consultancy firm GoWest Jobs which is offering jobs in Canada. He said the Philippine Overseas Employment Office in Toronto reported that Eric Johansen, Director of Immigration Services Branch of the Ministry of the Economy in Saskatchewan province, has notified them
about the alleged fraudulent job offers and labor market opinion being made by GoWest Jobs. Johansen said he received complaints from Canadian employers that GoWest Jobs has been issuing to Filipino applicants’ employment contracts and labor market opinions with forged signatures. He said several Filipino workers have inquired from a Saskatchewan employer if the signed employment contracts and labor market opinions they got from GoWest Jobs were genuine. The general manager of SRI Homes has confirmed that his signature was forged in the employment contracts. The Employment and
Social Development Canada also confirmed that the labor market opinions were not authentic. Johansen, in his report, said: "All the foreign workers confirmed they paid GoWest Jobs for these employment contracts and labor market opinions. The foreign workers stated they paid for and received the employment contracts and labor market opinions from Rose LisingGrey and Imelda Saluma." Cacdac advised applicants who may have been issued fake documents by GoWest Jobs to execute an affidavit of complaint and submit them to the POEA for appropriate filing of illegal recruitment cases. (Mindanao Examiner)
POEA rings bell on GoWest Jobs
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Welcome Pope Francis!
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“The Life of Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio)”
ATHER Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born in Buenos Aires, the capital and largest city of Argentina,on December 17, 1936. He was baptized by Fr. Enrique Pozzoli, an Italian Salesian priest who was close to the family. Today, Pope Francis often speaks of the importance of Baptism and urges the faithful to remember the date on which they became a Christian. His father,Mario Jose Francisco Bergoglio, was an Italian immigrant. One of his grandfather’s brothers had started a flooring enterprise in Parana, Argentina that was doing well and the four Bergoglio brothers were putting up a family business. “They disembarqued from the ‘Julius Caesar’, though they should have sailed on an earlier voyage: with the ‘Princess Malfada’, which sank.” Fr. Jorge wrote. “You cannot imagine how many times I have thanked divine Providence!” Having worked as an accountant in the Bank of Italy in Turin, Papa Mario, though an only child, had enjoyed being part of Don Bosco’s “Salesian Family ” in Italy. When he arrived in Buenos Aires in 1929, he went to live with the Salesians in Solis Lane where he was warmly welcomed in typical Salesian fashion. It was there that Mario encountered Fr. Pozzoli who promptly became his confessor. Photography and other creative activities attracted the youth. Mario settled in to his new life in Buenos Aires and joined the lively group of young men that gathered around Fr. Pozzoli in much the same way the young men in Turin had often surrounded Don Bosco. Fr. Pozzoli the missionary, confessor, and watchmaker, was also a photographer and much loved by the Sivori family, and most of all by their eldest son, Vincent Sivori, who had a passionate love for photography.
ARMM
Mario met the Sivori brothers who were part of the Círulos Católicos de Obreros and eventually met Regina Maria Sivori whom he married on December 12, 1935 in San Carlos. Jorge’s Mama devoted herself to raising the family and to giving their five children a healthy religious upbringing. His grandmother, Dona Rosa Margarita Vasallo de Bergoglio, a great promoter of Catholic Action,greatly inspired young Jorge who often carried with him one of her leaflets entitled “St. Joseph in the life of the maiden, the widow and the bride.” He recounts one occasion when his grandmother said things that did not please the government and they closed the hall where she was to speak. Undaunted, she spoke out on the street, standing on a table. “It’s not strange that I speak with affection of the Salesians, “ he wrote, “because my family was nourished spiritually by the Salesians of San Carlos. “As a child I learned to go to the procession of Mary Help of Christians,” he wrote, “and also to that of Saint Anthony of Mexico Street. When I was at my grandmother’s home, I went to the Oratory of Saint Francis of Sales. “As a child I had in my hands the Religious Instruction of Father Moret.” Fr Jorge added. “They had taught us to ask for ‘the blessing of Mary Help of Christians’ every time we took leave of a Salesian.” An economic recession,however, began to take a toll on the flourishing Bergoglio family business. The President of the firm, Jorge’s granduncle, became ill with leukemia and lymphosarcoma and died. The two events—the recession and the death of Juan Lorenzo—caused the family business to fail. They had to sell everything, from the family chapel in the cemetery to the four storey “Bergoglio Building” where the four brothers lived. Jorge’s grandparents and his Papa were left with nothing.(http:// papalvisit.ph)
Southern Mindanao
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10 things you need to know about Pope Francis FROM the moment he stepped into the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica upon his election to the papacy on March 13, 2013, His Holiness Pope Francis has captured the world’s attention for his simple message of God’s boundless love and mercy. Here are 10 things you need to know about His Holiness Pope Francis: 1. Pope Francis is a pope of many “firsts”. 2. Pope Francis sees himself as a sinner. 3. Pope Francis be-
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lieves the Church should be more like a “field hospital after battle,” with bishops serving as true pastors and priests spending more time in confessionals, consoling wounded souls.s 4. Pope Francis wants to keep it simple but “cannot live without people.” 5. Pope Francis only has the deepest of affections for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, his “brother” who now lives in a monastery at the Vatican. 6. Pope Francis is a re-
former; he is not afraid to shake things up. 7. Pope Francis says “no” to an economy of exclusion. 8. Pope Francis warns Christians against falling into the trap of spiritual worldliness,” which is “selfcenteredness cloaked in an outward religiosity bereft of God. 9. Pope Francis is a fervent devotee of the Blessed Mother. 10. Pope Francis is a son of the Church. Selected Sources:
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Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, November 24, 2013 “A Big Heart Open to God: The Exclusive Interview with Pope Francis” (America: The National Catholic Review), September 30, 2013 Press Conference of Pope Francis During the Return Flight from the Apostolic Journey to Rio de Janeiro on the Occasion of the XXVIII World Youth Day, July 28, 2013 (http://papalvisit.ph)
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