Philippines to join 28 nations in world’s largest drill

June 10, 2024 | 8:32 pm

By Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza Reporter and Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

THE PHILIPPINES will join the world’s largest naval drill in Hawaii this month, according to the US Pacific Fleet.

It will be joined by Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia from the Southeast Asian region and 24 other countries in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise from June 26 to Aug. 2 in and around the Hawaiian Islands, the world’s largest fleet command said in a statement posted on its website.

About 40 surface ships, three submarines, 14 national land forces, more than 150 aircraft and over 25,000 people will participate in the biennial naval drill, it added.

Australia and Japan, two key US allies in the Indo-Pacific region that have pursued closer ties with the Philippines under President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., will also participate in the drills.

Participants also include Belgium, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Germany, India, Israel, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Tonga and the United Kingdom.

“During RIMPAC, integrated and prepared partners train and operate together in order to strengthen our collective forces and promote a free and open Indo-Pacific,” according to the statement.

“RIMPAC 2024 contributes to the increased interoperability, resiliency and agility needed by the Joint and Combined Force to deter and defeat aggression by major powers across all domains and levels of conflict,” it added.

The US, Japan and Australia have been active in calling for a free and open Indo-Pacific region amid China’s growing assertiveness in the South China Sea and nuclear threats from North Korea — issues that Mr. Marcos has raised in various international fora.

The region is home to seven of the world’s 10 largest military powers including China, which claims the South China Sea almost in its entirety including areas within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.

The Philippines is a member of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which will be chaired by Malaysia next year.

“RIMPAC is a rich opportunity for the Philippines to learn with fellow navies on the trends and timeless lessons on naval warfare and interoperability with like-minded partners in a coalition scale of operations,” Joshua Bernard B. Espeña, who teaches international relations at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.

“There is also the bonus of improving the Philippine Navy’s tempo of operating in distance beyond archipelagic waters,” he added.

Mr. Marcos last week vowed to give the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) the resources and training it needs to boost its external defense role.

“Now, I am sure that all of you are aware now that the internal threat has been reduced,” he told the Army’s 10^th Infantry Division in Mawab, Davao de Oro in southern Philippines. “We now have to also think about the external threat, and that again is a different strategy that we will have to employ.”

“The bottom line is for the AFP to learn the lost art of conventional warfare — lost since the AFP has been immersed in internal security operations which are much land-based,” Mr. Espeña said.

“At the strategic level, it sends a message of Manila’s determination to keep moving and learning in the hope of communicating to adversaries that going beyond Manila’s red line is counterproductive to its interests.”

The US Third Fleet will serve as the RIMPAC’s combined task force commander, while a member of the Chilean Navy will serve as deputy commander. A member of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force will serve as vice commander.

UN RESOLUTION
Also on Monday, Party-list Rep. Erwin T. Tulfo filed a resolution urging the government of Mr. Marcos to take the Philippines’ sea dispute with China to the United Nations (UN) General Assembly.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) should sponsor a resolution before the UN assembly calling on Beijing to “stop unlawful actions” within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone, according to House Resolution No. 1766.

“The UN, through its resolutions, can significantly influence international norms and policies, providing a robust platform for the Philippines to assert its maritime rights and seek global support against unlawful actions by any state,” Mr. Tulfo said in a separate statement.

Tensions between the Philippines and China have worsened in the past year as Beijing’s coast guard continues to block Philippine resupply missions to Second Thomas Shoal, where it grounded a World War II-era ship in 1999 to assert its sovereignty.

The shoal is more than 1,000 kilometers from China’s nearest major landmass, Hainan Island, and about 200 kilometers from the Philippine island of Palawan.

A UN-backed tribunal in 2016 voided China’s claim to more then 80% of the sea for being illegal.

The landmark decision “conclusively invalidated the Chinese government’s expansive claims under the so-called nine-dash line,” Mr. Tulfo said in the resolution.

He said China’s disregard of international law diminishes the country’s territorial integrity and compromises regional stability.

The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately reply to a Viber message seeking comment.

“In principle, this is what we are supposed to be doing,” Hansley A. Juliano, a lecturer at the Ateneo de Manila University’s Department of Political Science, told BusinessWorld in a Facebook Messenger chat.

A DFA resolution before the UN General Assembly would “mostly be a restatement” of the tribunal’s ruling in 2016, he added.

“The resolution brought to the UN General Assembly could draw more significant global attention to the Philippines’ stance on the South China Sea dispute,” Julia Rocio Salle Gatdula, a defense economist at the University of Asia and the Pacific, said via Messenger chat.

“But it is important to note that UN General Assembly resolutions are nonbinding, thus providing limited political power,” she added.

China is unlikely to honor a UN resolution over the South China Sea, Mr. Juliano said. “China is clear at this point that the only international order it wants is the one where it’s at the top.”

The UN General Assembly’s track record on geopolitical issues is also “spotty” because the body is “held hostage” by countries with nuclear arms and veto power, he added.

Mr. Juliano said Manila’s advantage is that it is an ally of the United States, which could support it in the push against about Beijing’s encroachment within Philippine waters.

PHL eyes 100 irrigation pumps powered by solar

June 10, 2024 | 8:31 pm

solar-irrigation — PHILIPPINE INFORMATION AGENCY

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. on Monday ordered the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) to look at its assets with power generation potential, as his government seeks to set up more than 100 solar-powered irrigation pumps this year.

He also urged the private sector to pursue “extraordinary” projects to advance the country’s transition to clean energy.

The government set up 82 solar-powered pump projects last year, and 152 more will be built this year, Mr. Marcos said at the inauguration of a P65.7-million solar-powered pump in a farming village in Quirino, Isabela north of Manila, the capital.

“I encourage you to study our other irrigation assets so that we can establish power generations like this,” he told NIA officials, based on a transcript from the presidential palace.

The Cabaruan solar-reliant irrigation system, touted as the biggest of its kind in the Philippines with 1,056 solar panels that can produce 739,200 watts, is expected to irrigate 350 hectares of rice fields and benefit 200 rice farmers.

The palace said the project, which is under NIA’s Magat River Integrated Irrigation System, is the first solar-powered irrigation pump in the country to be built over an irrigation canal, so farmers need not donate a portion of the land they till.

“Our savings here are really huge because aside from having a free electricity source, we placed our solar panels directly on top of the irrigation canal, so it won’t reduce the land area planted by our farmers,” the President said at the launch.

Mr. Marcos, 66, has vowed to boost the country’s shift to renewable energy after his election in 2022, asking foreign investors in international fora to consider green investments in the Philippines.

Coal accounted for 58% of the Philippines’ power generation mix in 2021, according to the Energy department.

Green groups have warned against the Marcos government’s decision to lower tariffs on coal briquettes, saying it could delay the country’s transition to clean energy.

The government should instead come up with more incentives for renewable energy projects, they said.

Increased electricity costs drove May inflation, which hit 3.9% from 3.8% in April.

The President also led the ceremonial signing of a connection agreement for a 440-megawatt (MW) solar farm in Ilagan City and Gamu town in Isabela that will be undertaken by San Ignacio Energy Resources Development Corp. and the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines, with financial and technical expertise from French company Total Energies.

San Ignacio is a unit of Nextnorth Energy Group, which is pursuing solar and hydropower projects in northern Luzon.

Construction of the P18-billion Isabela Ground Mounted Solar Project, which could benefit 4,000 workers, is expected to begin in the fourth quarter and will be finished by 2026.

A 2024 Green Economy Report for Southeast Asia by Bain & Co. said green investments in the Philippines rose by 57% to $1.46 billion last year. This still fell short of the more than $16-billion capital investments needed for its green transition.

“Let us continue to pursue extraordinary opportunities like this, to give ourselves and the next generations a fighting chance to succeed in reversing our exacerbating climate change problems,” Mr. Marcos said. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Senate complex construction ordered halted due to costs

June 10, 2024 | 8:30 pm

SENATE President Francis “Chiz” G. Escudero on Monday ordered the suspension of construction work for the new Senate building in Taguig City due to “escalating costs,” citing the need to review expenses and management practices.

After a flag-raising ceremony at the Senate, he told reporters the Senate would not be transferring to the Taguig building by September or anytime next year after the project cost rose to P23 billion from P8.9 billion.

“In my view, many people will find it in bad taste especially since we are in the middle of an economic crisis and with many of our countrymen living in poverty,” Mr. Escudero said in Filipino. “It is hard to swallow, and it is really surprising.”

Senator Alan Peter S. Cayetano, who heads the committee on accounts, told the Senate chief about the rising expenses for the building in a report on June 7.

Procurement delays by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and changes to the project had led to additional expenses worth P833 million, the Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau said in a statement.

Mr. Escudero agreed with Mr. Cayetano’s recommendations, including identifying “underlying problems in the project and compelling the DPWH to question, evaluate and rectify issues that can still be corrected,” he said in a separate statement.

“I told Senator Cayetano that based on his recommendation and report, to suspend whatever payments until we study this,” Mr. Escudero said.

The Senate has been renting its Pasay City building, which is owned by the Government Service Insurance System, since 1997.

In 2017, Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian filed a resolution that created an ad hoc committee to study the construction of the new Senate building, which is being built in Fort Bonifacio in Taguig City. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Philippines, New Zealand seek stronger RE, defense ties

June 10, 2024 | 8:30 pm

enrique-manalo — Enrique A. Manalo, Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Philippines — DFA.GOV.PH

By John Victor D. Ordoñez, Reporter

THE FOREIGN affairs chiefs of the Philippines and New Zealand met on Monday and committed to boosting ties in renewable energy (RE) and trade, while finalizing a visiting forces agreement that could be signed by the two states this year.

In a statement, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said that Secretary Enrique A. Manalo met with his New Zealand counterpart, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters, and discussed growing two-way trade, investment, and climate change cooperation.

Security and defense cooperation was also discussed, amid rising tensions with China in the South China Sea, the DFA said.

“We agreed to strengthen our existing mechanisms for cooperation on political, security and defense and labor, and to open new avenues for partnerships in trade and investment that leverage our respective strengths while promoting our national priorities, particularly on renewable energy and combating climate change,” Mr. Manalo said in his speech in Makati City after meeting with Mr. Peters.

A copy of his speech was sent by the DFA to reporters via WhatsApp.

“We reaffirmed our continued commitment to uphold the rule of law as a pillar to achieving peace and security in the region,” he added.

Last April, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon met in Manila, agreeing to fast-tracking negotiations for a visiting forces agreement that would allow joint military exercises and humanitarian missions between both countries.

Manila and Auckland plan on increasing two-way trade by at least 50% in the next few years, Mr. Luxon said during his visit.

Tensions between the Philippines and China have worsened in the past year as Beijing continues to block resupply missions to Second Thomas Shoal, where Manila grounded a World War II-era ship in 1999 to assert its sovereignty.

“As fellow democratic nations and responsible members of the international community, we agreed to jointly advance the values that we hold dear in the multilateral arenas, especially in the United Nations,” Mr. Manalo said.

Group files graft complaint vs PCSO officials over e-lotto

June 10, 2024 | 8:29 pm

A NONGOVERNMENTAL group has filed a corruption and plunder complaint at the Ombudsman against Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) officials and the directors of a private company in connection with the agency’s e-lotto operations.

In a 38-page complaint, the Filipinos for Peace, Justice and Progress Movement said the deal gave the private company a 14% commission even if it had proposed zero commission or no cost to the government.

Under their deal last year, the web application system, payment gateway, telecommunication cost, service level agreement premium support, cloud service subscription and maintenance and service hosting costs had been originally offered at no cost to the PCSO, the group said.

The memorandum of agreement eventually signed by PCSO General Manager Melquiades A. Robles, one of the respondents in the complaint, provided a 14% commission, the civic group said, alleging “criminal intent to defraud the government.”

The group noted that on Jan. 17 alone, the PCSO logged P265 million in total e-lotto sales.

“As 14% of P265 million is P37.1 million just for one day, respondents could easily be committing plunder every other day from the outrageously excessive 14% commissions,” it added.

“The complaint has no legal leg to stand on because our memorandum of agreement is subject to review by the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC),” Mr. Robles said by telephone.

“[The complaint] was based entirely on a former OGCC review, which has already been superseded by a new one,” he added. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana

DoJ offers free legal aid

June 10, 2024 | 8:28 pm

AS PART of the weeklong celebration of Independence Day, the Department of Justice (DoJ) is offering free legal services until today, June 11, at Rizal Park in Manila.

The DoJ Action Center (DoJAC) and the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) began offering free legal services and assistance to walk-in clients starting June 10.

The Board of Claims (BoC) will assist victims with compensation applications and queries. Likewise, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) will process clearance applications, while the Bureau of Immigration (BI) will help tourists with online visa applications.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) at the same event, will offer free registration for the Motorcycle Riding Academy, mobile earthquake simulator, anti-smoking campaign, and solid waste management.

Inquiries regarding verification of traffic violations and payment of penalties will also be available. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana

Bill forbids mobile phones in class

June 10, 2024 | 8:28 pm

A SENATOR filed a bill on Monday that forbids students from using their cell phones and other gadgets in class from Kindergarten to Senior High School to keep them focused on their lessons.

“Aside from the decrease in learners’ academic performance, access to such devices seems likely to mediate involvement in cyberbullying that is why the use of mobile devices and other electronic gadgets must be restricted, especially during class hours,” said Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian, who filed Senate Bill No. 2706, the proposed Gadget-Free Schools Act.

Under the measure, the Department of Education is tasked to craft guidelines on banning cellphones during class hours in both private and public schools.

Mr. Gatchalian cited results from the 2022 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) that showed 8 in 10 students aged 15 years old were reported being distracted by smartphone use during class.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization recommended stricter regulation on mobile phone use in class, noting that only 13% of countries in the world have laws banning these during class hours. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Congressmen urge POGO ban

June 10, 2024 | 8:27 pm

CONGRESSMEN urged the government on Monday to ban Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) due to the criminal activities linked to its operations.

Lawmakers reiterated their call to outlaw offshore gaming operations after authorities reportedly found torture victims within the premises of a POGO hub in Porac, Pampanga last week.

“These POGOs contributed heavily to the deterioration of our moral fiber. They are fronts to Chinese-led criminal syndicates [engaged in] illegal activities that gave rise to murder, kidnapping for ransom, rape, prostitution, torture,” Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace S. Barbers said in a statement.

Senators last week called for the government to consider POGOs as a threat to national security, calling to put a stop to its operations in the country.

The recent raids on POGO compounds in Porac and Bamban, Tarlac province show proof that offshore gaming operations have “become fronts for illegal activities” including money laundering, illegal immigration, prostitution, extortion, and kidnapping, Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus B. Rodriguez said in a separate statement.

4,039 victims have fallen prey to POGO-related crimes such as human trafficking in the first half of last year, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said last October.

There were around 60 POGO-related killings recorded last year, the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) told before a Senate panel in May.

“The negative, evil, and harmful effects of POGOs on society far outweigh the revenue they bring in,” Mr. Rodriguez said in a separate statement. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio

Probe high ginger prices, DA told

June 10, 2024 | 8:26 pm

SENATE Majority Leader Francis N. Tolentino called on the Department of Agriculture (DA) on Monday to investigate the high cost of ginger, which he says makes the preparation of food like fish more expensive for Filipinos.

“When you buy fish, it’s natural to buy ginger. Even if fish prices go down, the high cost of ginger offsets it,” he said in a statement. “P320 [per kilo]? It was just P220 last week. That’s incredibly expensive.”

National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa said last week the higher price of ginger was driven by the consumer price index picking up to 3.9% year on year in May from 3.8% a year earlier. It was the fastest inflation since 4.1% in November and 3.9% in December.

Last week, the DA’s price watch reported that the average ginger price in Metro Manila hit P280 per kilogram on May 31. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

EC staff retirement plan pushed

June 10, 2024 | 8:26 pm

THE NATIONAL Electrification Administration (NEA) has directed electric cooperatives (ECs) to establish a retirement fund or plan for the financial security of their retiring employees.

“This retirement fund/plan is for the benefit of all regular employees of ECs to motivate them to render continuous, quality and efficient service to its member-consumers-owners and other stakeholders,” NEA said in Memorandum No. 2024-25 signed by its administrator Antonio Mariano C. Almeda.

NEA said that the plan would contain “the income goals of the fund, the investment actions to be made to achieve those goals, the benefits that an employee will receive upon separation and the requirements to be entitled to such benefits.”

It will be sourced from the internally generated fund of the EC, after the conduct of an actuarial valuation to determine the amount necessary to cover the retirement of all regular employees.

The retirement fund/plan is upon approval of NEA’s board of directors.

The amount should be included in the annual corporate operating budget of the EC after the conduct of an actuarial valuation and determination of the fund necessary for the purpose, the agency said.

“The EC shall submit an actuarial report of the accumulated funds every two years. Once the accumulated fund is sufficient for the retirement benefits of all existing EC employees, the EC shall desist from transferring funds for retirement,” NEA said.

NEA said that “retirement planning is crucial for all [ECs] and setting up a retirement fund/plan shall ensure ECs compliance with the laws.” — Sheldeen Joy Talavera

CSC helps gov’t workers obtain civil service eligibility

June 10, 2024 | 8:26 pm

THE CIVIL Service Commission (CSC) urged government workers anew to apply for the Grant of Career Service Eligibility – Preference Rating (CSE-PR) to obtain necessary civil service eligibility and fill vacant positions in the government.

“In recognition of these government workers who have already contributed so much in our efforts to provide efficient public service, the CSC has resolved to grant them with CSE (Career Service Examinations) preference rating under specific conditions,” said CSC Chairperson Karlo Alexei B. Nograles in a press briefing on Monday.

Qualified workers of at least 10 years under Job Order (JO), Contract of Service (COS), Casual, Contractual, Coterminous, employees holding Category III and Category IV (JOCOSC6) positions are eligible to take the CSE-PR.

The applicant must have a performance rating of at least Very Satisfactory or equivalent in the two most recent rating periods before the application date.

A maximum of 10 points of Preference Rating will be added to the failed general rating of 70-79.99 of qualified applicants to reach the passing 80% rate.

An applicant is only allowed to use the grant once.

The application deadline for the August 2024 Pen and Paper Test for both the Professional and Subprofessional Levels is June 13, 2024.

More than 90 testing centers across 16 regions are available to accommodate applicants.

As of 2023, there are 204,054 vacancies in government agencies nationwide.

Vacancies in career items reached 200,889, while available non-career posts reached 3,165 last year.

As the jobless rate in the Philippines spiked to a three-month high in April, Mr. Nograles said they are “positive” the policy will impact the country’s labor force.

“We’re very positive that this will have an impact in getting more, number one, civil service eligibles into the [force], and number two, getting them to fill up the current vacant positions,” Mr. Nograles said.

Complete guidelines for the CSE-PR may be accessed at CSC’s website csc.gov.ph. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana

Disarming drive nets 14 guns

June 10, 2024 | 8:25 pm

Guns-Firearms — PHILIPPINE STAR/JOHN FELIX M. UNSON

COTABATO CITY — A total of 14 high-caliber firearms were seized by army soldiers from a hut discovered by farmers and believed to be an armory of the New People’s Army (NPA) in the village of Lumintao, Quezon town in Bukidnon last weekend.

Major Gen. Allan D. Hambala, commander of the Army’s 10^th Infantry Division, said on Monday that the weapons cache consisted of eight M16 rifles, an M653 rifle, two M14 rifles, and three AK-47 rifles.

The guns were seized by elements of the Army’s 1003^rd Infantry Brigade, who also reported to their commander, Brig. Gen. Marion T. Angcao, that NPA rebels had been forcibly collecting monthly “revolutionary taxes” from hapless farmers in the area.

Mr. Hambala said they theorized that the firearms, which were concealed under a stack of banana leaves, were left by rebels because they could have descended to the marketplace in the town center to purchase food and other supplies. — John Felix M. Unson