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Mar
31
From gmanews.tv:
The South Luzon Tollways Corp. (SLTC) will charge higher toll rates beginning Friday – the last of four monthly adjustments to bring fees to levels approved by government.
The operator of the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx) will then charge P86 for class 1 vehicles, P172 for class 2, and P258 for class 3. At the start of the year, class 1 vehicles were charged P76, class 2 with P152, and class 3 with P65.
In December, the Toll Regulatory Board approved a 300-percent toll hike from the previous rate set in the 1980s. The SLTC management, however, said it hiked its rates by only 250 percent to soften the blow on motorists.
“For the past four months, our customers have enjoyed discounted toll,” SLTC president Isaac David said.
David noted the improvements in the maintenance and traffic in SLEX, which have made it a “world-class” four-lane highway.
“Our maintenance of the road is now remarkable and it’s also very clean now. This means safer travel for motorists that use the road,” he said.
Transport groups, however, had earlier expressed fears that the toll hike will drive up the prices of goods. — MRT/PE/VS, GMA News
Mar
31
Aguilar orders building inspections, earthquake drills in Las Piñas
Filed Under Las Piñas, News | Leave a Comment
LAS PIÑAS CITY, MM — Las Piñas City Mayor Vergel Aguilar ordered the City Engineering office to conduct inspection of factories and business establishments, public and private school buildings, hospitals, condominiums and other high rise residences in the city for any unsound structures that may endanger it should a strong magnitude earthquake occurs.
Aguilar, also directed the Las Piñas Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council and private business establishments owners, school officials to continue holding its quarterly exercises on earthquake drills and conduct massive information campaign to prevent tragedies, especially in public places like schools, malls, and places frequently visited by people.
The twin directives were issued by the mayor in response to the call of the country’s chief seismologist for local executives, the national and local engineers to inspect the structural soundness of all public and private buildings to ensure that Filipinos will at least stand a chance against a major earthquake similar to the one that wiped out several villages in Japan recently.
Aguilar reminded business establishment owners to strictly follow building standards and comply with national building code requirements to avoid any disaster.
“We cannot compromise the safety and lives of our people. I urge all our business owners, school officials to be responsible and do their share in disaster risk reduction,” Aguilar said.
“Our suggestion is to inspect all buildings if it complies with the national building code. That’s one thing we can and must do at the local level to prepare for any eventuality and for the safety of everyone,” he said.
Director Renato Solidum Jr. of Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), also called on all local executives, particularly in coastal communities, to fine-tune their alert and evacuation systems in the event of a tidal wave slamming their shores.
Phivolcs study said that at least 1.3 million buildings are in possible danger in Metro Manila, a region that is vulnerable to earthquakes and tsunami.
Metro Manila is bounded by a fault in the west and by the Manila trench in the east.
Solidum said Filipino homes are generally safer from earthquakes just as long as they follow prescribed guidelines in the building code, including the use of construction materials that pass quality standards. (END)
Mar
30
COA chairman’s car recovered; Barangay BF assures best effort in combating carnapping
Filed Under News, Paranaque | Leave a Comment
Upon hearing of the carnap incidents within the vicinity of BF Homes Paranaque (we heard of two—the more publicized one in Conti’s and one brought to our attention by one of our readers), we immediately asked Barangay BF Homes what they are doing to combat carnapping in their neighborhood.
We thank Barangay BF Homes (whoever is in-charge of their Facebook Page) for replying promptly to our inquiry.
According to them, we really cannot consider carnapping in the area as “rampant” as the one reported in front of Conti’s “was an isolated case.”
They also said that the Fortuner of COA chairman Reynaldo Villar had already been recovered around 8 p.m. last night behind PCJ Church “thanks to the heightened security of our barangay police who spotted the vehicle and reported to the police.”
They explained that this crime happens all over the metro and that for their part, their barangay tanods are always mobilized 24/7 and are always in close coordination with the city PNP and the private security forces of the various enclaves under its jurisdiction.
“Our barangay police (tanods) have also been beefed up by adding more volunteers in high-risk areas (commercial and mission sites),” said Barangay BF Homes this morning.
They also reiterated that carnapping is a police matter and that being the largest barangay in the country, the 16 total uniformed policemen assigned to them will not always be enough.
“Law enforcers cannot do it alone. The police and the barangay police need the help of the community to maintain peace and order,” expressed the barangay.
They also called on their constituents to be vigilant at all times and to report any barangay police matter to their Peace and Order Hotline (809-8843).
“We are assuring the general public that Barangay BF is doing everything in its capability to address these security problems,” said Barangay BF.
We would like to thank Barangay BF for replying to our message on Facebook.
Mar
30
Full story of Conti’s BF carnapping here
Filed Under News, Paranaque | Leave a Comment
By Miko Morelos
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:42:00 03/30/2011
MANILA, Philippines—They’re getting bolder.
A man held a government official at gunpoint for several minutes Tuesday morning in Parañaque City before fleeing with his vehicle—a government-issued sport utility vehicle (SUV).
Commission on Audit (CoA) Chairman Reynaldo Villar told the Inquirer in a phone interview that the carjacking took place in front of a restaurant on President’s Avenue and A. Aguirre Street inside BF Homes Subdivision at around 10 a.m.
According to him, he usually stops by the restaurant to drink coffee and read newspapers after his regular morning exercise.
Every time, he said, he would drive his car himself.
On Tuesday, Villar was about to drive home when a man opened the door on the passenger side and got in.
“When I sat down, he pointed his gun toward me, told me to look straight ahead and start driving,” he said.
From the place where he had parked, Villar said he drove for about 150 meters toward J. Elizalde Street as the man instructed him not to make any sudden movements or attempt to escape because “his accomplices were watching.”
“I do not know if what the suspect said was true,” Villar said, explaining that the man may have made the whole thing up just to prevent him from escaping.
He added that the man also told him that he and his cohorts had been monitoring his movements for the past two weeks.
The man also said that he was “just taking orders from someone else” and that he wanted to know more about his “target.”
However, he did not elaborate.
Villar said that after a few minutes, the man ordered him to get out of the vehicle.
The car thief then drove off with the Toyota Fortuner (Plate No. ZRV 924).
“It was the service vehicle assigned to me about three years ago,” the CoA chairman said.
According to him, he lost his cell phone, various office documents and an e-pass which were inside the vehicle.
Villar said that he immediately called up his driver and instructed him to report the carjacking to the Parañaque City police.
Senior Superintendent Nestor Pastoral, city police chief, said he had ordered his men to put up checkpoints near the area where Villar’s SUV was taken although nothing came out of it.
Security guards inside BF Homes Subdivision, where Villar lives, were also alerted.
A check with people in the area, however, yielded nothing about the car thief’s identity.
“Our investigators were told by the parking attendants they interviewed that they did not notice the incident,” Pastoral said in a phone interview.
He added that the SUV’s license plate had been flashed to all police stations to alert their units to look out for the stolen vehicle.
Villar, meanwhile, said he was just glad to come out of the experience unscathed.
“I am thankful that I wasn’t harmed,” he told the Inquirer.
Mar
30
CANDICE MONTENEGRO, GMA News 03/30/2011 |
As the number of dengue cases go up in the National Capital Region (NCR), the Department of Health (DOH) urged local governments in the region to take action this summer against what is generally perceived to be a “rainy season disease.”
The DOH particularly urged barangay health officials in the NCR to implement an anti-dengue drive as the cases in the region went up by more than 100 percent in the first two months of the year.
Dr. Irma Asuncion of the DOH Center for Health Development-Metro Manila (CHDMM) reminded local government officials at a summit on Wednesday that dengue is no longer a seasonal disease that only comes after the onset of the rainy season.
Asuncion said dengue cases are now recorded all year round, and the only way to stop the spread of dengue is by eliminating the breeding grounds for dengue-carrying mosquitoes.
“We really have to involve the barangay because the action should start with them,” she told GMA News Online.
“We want them to be aware na DOH can only do this much, but the bulk of the work is really with the barangay.”
The DOH urged barangay captains to formulate local ordinances and resolutions to make health and disease prevention one of their major agenda.
She added that best practices and multi-sectoral initiatives must be shared with other LGUs.
Through its early anti-dengue campaign, the DOH aims to bring down the number of dengue cases this year.
In 2010, more than 135,000 dengue cases were reported, the worst dengue outbreak recorded in the country in the last 10 years.
Most number of dengue cases
Every year, the NCR records the highest number of dengue cases in the country.
However, for this year, a high number of cases was already reported in January and February: 3,640 dengue cases in Metro Manila alone, a 106 percent increase from the 1,866 cases recorded in the same period in 2010.
Twenty-nine deaths were already recorded this year.
The cities with the most number of dengue cases are:
•Quezon City;
•Manila;
•Pasig City;
•Caloocan City;
•Valenzuela City;
and •Parañaque City.
Dengue prevention in summer The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) earlier told Filipinos to expect a “wet summer,” as changes in weather systems may cause rains in the coming months, especially in Visayas and Mindanao.
However, DOH clarified that while dengue cases usually go up during rainy seasons, the spread of dengue cases happen when there are breeding grounds for Aedes aegypti, the dengue-carrying mosquito.
Dr. Ruben Siapno from the DOH CHDMM said the only sure way to eliminate dengue is by cleaning the surroundings and eliminating stagnant water that can become breeding sites for mosquitoes. He stressed the importance of eliminating stagnant water, as mosquitoes can lay their eggs and breed on water the size of a 25-centavo coin. Siapno added that effort from the local community can do a lot in lessening, if not completely eliminating, dengue cases in the country.
He cited for example the dengue outbreak in Singapore in 2005, where the government hired one million health workers to search and destroy breeding grounds of dengue-carrying mosquitoes, after which dengue cases significantly dropped after just one week.
“Kaya naman natin eh, basta makipagtulungan lamang ang lokal na pamahalaan sa DOH (We can do this if the local government works hand in hand with DOH),” Siapno said. Dengue-proof your homes The health department reminded the public to dengue-proof their homes this summer, especially during long holidays like the Holy Week when families usually take vacations and leave the house for a long period.
To avoid dengue-carrying mosquitoes from breeding in homes, the DOH reminds the public to:
•empty and turn over water storage containers;
•cover toilet bowls;
•avoid placing water containers in dark areas;
•replace water in vases every other day;
and •cover areas around the house where water may accumulate. – VVP, GMA News
