SERVICE, HONOR, and JUSTICE. These are the three words that can be  found in the Philippine National Police’s Seal and Badge. Nakatahi sa uniporme at  nakaukit sa lahat ng tsapa. Tatlong salita na sumasalamin sa sinumpaang  tungkulin ng isang pulis. Ito ang nagsisilbing paalala sa kapulisan na ang bawat  isa sa kanila ay may pananagutan sa bayan. 

Nakalulungkot na sa tuwing may ilang mga pulis na nakalilimot ng tatlong  salita na aking nabanggit, ang imahe ng buong institusyon ang nababahiran.  

Noong araw po, kapag may mga batang nawala sa isang pasyalan, agad  silang maghahanap ng pulis dahil ito ang bilin ng kanilang mga magulang. Sa  paglipas po ng panahon, ang pulis na pinagkakatiwalaan ng ating mga magulang  ay naging panakot na sa makukulit na mga bata. Makailang beses na po nating  narinig ang mga katagang: “Sige ka, kukunin ka ng pulis!”?  

Masakit po sa damdamin. Lalo na po sa katulad kong nagsilbi bilang isang  alagad ng batas sa mahigit na tatlong dekada. Sa ating mga kasamahan sa PNP,  hindi po ba tayo nahihiya na ganito na ang pagtingin sa atin ng ating mga  pinaglilingkuran? Gusto ba nating paniwalaan ng karamihan ang kasabihan na “the  only good cop is a dead cop”? Hindi tayo papayag niyan.  

I have always been supportive of the PNP, the institution that I was once  given the honor and privilege to lead. However, I will never turn a blind eye to their  alleged misdemeanors. My dreams and aspirations to fully reform our PNP have  never wavered. Perhaps it is true that “one rotten apple spoils the barrel”. But more  than weeding out the single person that corrupts the rest of his peers, it is saving  our honest and principled police officers that motivates me. 

Today, we are here once again to investigate alleged abuses and lapses in  judgment by our police. We intend to look for accountability but at the same time,  in looking, we hope to find some silver lining in all of these sad and unfortunate  incidents.  

We might not be able to find some magic bullet or some divine formula to  address all issues surrounding our police officers today. However, it is our hope  that we will be effective in reminding our police that their lives are no longer wholly  theirs. By virtue of their sworn duty, they have also dedicated their lives to service,  honor, and justice for the country.

Marilyn Cañeja’s journey from North Cotabato to Davao City is a tale of resilience and determination. As a young woman, she lived a sweet but meager life in the province. It was during her sophomore year in college that circumstances led her to drop out and work as a sales clerk in a pharmacy. Little did she know, this job would introduce her to her future husband.

Together, they shared dreams of independence; so they decided to quit their job and open a sari-sari store. The store prospered; however, to bear a child, she needed to give up the store as her doctor advised her to leave the stresses of store management behind. Meanwhile, her husband got a job as a bus conductor in Davao City. Prioritizing the family, Marilyn made the move to be closer to him after the birth of their child.

Their life was going well in Davao City, not until she was diagnosed with cancer in 2013. Bills are overwhelming, but despite the struggles they faced, they were able to pull back up, proudly announcing that she is now a cancer survivor.

Her next business venture was born out of her doctor’s advice to remain active and not lie down too often to fight the disease. This led her to start creating paper wallets in 2017. What started as a therapeutic activity blossomed into a flourishing enterprise. She used to finish 500 wallets in a week with the help of her husband and some of her neighbors, but now they can finish the 500 wallets in just half a day.

To support the early days of her business venture, Marilyn secured a loan from CARD Bank. She learned about the Bank in 2011, observing that many of her neighbors trusted its services.

Marilyn’s journey is proof of the power of determination. “Do not let the challenges be the reason for you to stop growing. Instead, treat them as a stepping stone in order to thrive,” Marilyn concluded.

The Social Security System (SSS) announced its net income in 2023 exceeded by 62.8 percent its target of P51.06 billion to P83.13 billion as it recorded higher revenues than its expenses.

Based on its 2023 unaudited financial statement, SSS’ net income of P83.13 billion in 2023 surpassed the P52.60 billion net income recorded in the previous year.

SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Rolando Ledesma Macasaet noted that the P83.13 billion profit last year was the highest net income attained by SSS.

“Our revenue in 2023 grew by 15.6 percent to P353.82 billion from P306.16 billion in the previous year,” Macasaet said.

He said that the bulk of SSS revenue in 2023 came from contribution collection, which rose by 18.2 percent to P309.12 billion from the P261.44 billion collected in 2022.

“Our record-high net income last year shows that we continue to strengthen our finances through programs and policies that increase new paying members and strengthen collection efforts,” he added.

Macasaet said that SSS recorded lower-than-revenue expenses of P270.69 billion, wherein the lion’s share of the total expenditure in 2023 went to benefit payments to members and pensioners.

“Our 2023 expenses reflect how SSS has prudently kept its expenses at modest levels and ensure that every peso contributed by its members are well spent for the benefit of all its stakeholders,” Macasaet said.

He said benefit payments last year stood at P259.03 billion, up by 6.7 percent from P242.81 billion in 2022, while our operating expenses were at P11.65 billion, 8.4 percent higher than the P10.75 billion a year ago.

“Our operating expenses last year were only 30.32 percent of the allowed charter limit of P38.4 billion. Based on our charter, the operating expenses are 12 percent of the contribution collections and 3 percent of other SSS income such as investments and loans,” Macasaet explained.

Macasaet attributed the outstanding financial performance of SSS last year to the efforts of the SSS management and employees in intensifying its collection activities such as registering new paying members, improved collection from delinquent employers, and the 2023 contribution rate hike.

“We implemented new initiatives in 2023 that resulted to an expansion of SSS membership and reaching more workers,” SSS Executive Vice President for Branch Operations Sector Voltaire P. Agas said.

Agas also explained that it recorded a high collection of delinquencies from employers who are not remitting their employees’ contributions due to the Run After Contribution Evaders (RACE) campaign. 

Pinuri ni Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva ang desisyon ng Kuwaiti appellate court na sang-ayunan ang guilty verdict sa pumaslang sa overseas Filipino worker (OFW) na si Jullebee Ranara, kasabay ng pagsabing hindi dapat hayaan ng pamahalaan na hindi maparusahan ang gumagawa ng krimen laban sa ‘modern day heroes’ sa ibang bansa.

“The government will stop at nothing until justice is served to our OFWs who have suffered in foreign lands to give their families better lives,” sabi ni Villanueva.

“We thank the Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Migrant Workers, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration and other agencies that helped pursue the case against Ranara’s killer,” dagdag niya.

Ayon kay Villanueva, principal sponsor at author ng DMW Act sa 18th Congress, mahalaga para sa kagawaran na matiyak na kumpleto ang kanilang staff sa kanilang regional offices para maharap ang mga reklamo ng illegal recruitment at indentured labor. Dapat sapat rin ang personnel sa Migrant Workers’ Offices lalo na’t lumawak ang kanilang trabaho kung saan sakop nila ang lahat ng OFWs, dokumentado man ang mga ito o hindi.

Ang katawan ni Ranara, isang household service worker, ay natagpuang sunog at inilibing sa disyerto noong Enero 21, 2023.

“Napakapait po ng sinapit ni Jullebee habang nakikipagsapalaran sa Kuwait.  Hindi na po maibabalik ang kanyang buhay ng conviction na ito pero umaasa tayo na mabawasan man lang ang sakit na naramdaman ng kanyang mga mahal sa buhay,” sabi ni Villanueva.

Sabi pa ng Majority Leader, ang kapalaran ni Ranara at iba pang OFWs na biktima ng injustice o kawalan na katarungan ay dapat magsilbing mahigpit na paalala upang patuloy na matiyak ang kaligtasan at kapakanan ng mga Pinoy sa ibang bansa.

“The overarching challenge remains that many of our OFWs face the perils of working in a foreign land.  We must remain vigilant and continue to collaborate with host countries so our OFWs will be protected,” ani Villanueva.

“Stronger bilateral agreements should be pursued to guarantee the implementation of standard contracts, just compensation and an effective system for dealing with OFWs in distress,” sambit pa niya.

CITY OF MALOLOS – A total of 497 Bulakenyos received quality medical and alternative healthcare services during the Surgical, Medical and Integrative Medicine Mission sponsored by GC Rivera Foundation from February 19 to 21, 2024 at the Rogaciano M. Mercado Memorial Hospital (RMMMH) in Santa Maria, Bulacan.

Through the foundation’s sponsorship and with the help of its top benefactor, Ms. Ashley Kohler, an innovative leader overseeing purpose-driven and community-focused initiatives, the said mission was able to provide health services to 244 patients for Medicine, 103 patients for Pediatrics, 100 patients for Integrative Medicine, 32 for Major Surgery and 18 for Minor Surgery.

Prior the scheduled medical mission, 11 boxes of OR/medical supplies had already been shipped to RMMMH.

Foundation’s President Jere Rivera-Dugenio, a doctor of Natural Medicine, said that aside from performing major and minor operations, their team of medical doctors also saw and checked patients and provided prescriptions for all medications needed by the beneficiaries.

“We also set up our own pharmacy where all patients seen by doctors can pick up their medications at no charge at all,” Rivera-Dugenio explained.

Furthermore, his team of doctors, nutritionists and therapists offered treatment, therapy and nutritional advise to children with autism and special needs.

The foundation also pledged 20 hospital beds for RMMMH.

RMMH Chief Dr. David Rawland M. Domingo said that the patients who availed of the free medical and alternative healthcare services were pre-identified but, they also accepted walk-in patients during the conduct of the mission.

Bulacan Gov. Daniel R. Fernando and Vice Gov. Alexis C. Castro expressed their appreciation and gratitude to GC Rivera Foundation for conducting their mission in Bulacan that brought additional provision of much needed healthcare to less fortunate Bulakenyos.

The GC Rivera Foundation is exclusively organized for charitable, educational and scientific purposes. The primary intention is to provide medical and alternative medicine healthcare to underprivileged individuals and children with special needs (autism spectrum disorder, Down’s Syndrome, MS, etc.) through paradigm-shifting, integrative, medical, surgical missions within and outside the United States of America.

The Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development (CEED), a sustainability think-tank, on Monday, released a report estimating that the Mindoro oil spill caused Php 41.2 billion worth of damage to the environment and the livelihood of affected fisherfolk.
 
The report, released two days before the first anniversary of the oil spill, estimates that the damage to the environment is around Php 40.1 billion, while socio-economic losses amount to Php 1.1 billion.
 
“Catastrophic oil spills like the one in the Verde Island Passage are deadly, costly, and can forever change sensitive ecosystems. The oil spill has also impoverished the people not just of Mindoro but other surrounding communities that depend on the resources of VIP for their survival. The Php41.2 billion figure is the approximation of the incalculable human and ecological costs of this tragedy, costs that will continue as we can no longer restore what has been lost,” said Gerry Arances, Executive Director of CEED.
 
The report’s findings are 800% higher compared to government figures, as official assessments failed to include significant implications for affected communities and ecosystems.
 
“The government has yet to produce a comprehensive study detailing the full extent of the impact of the oil spill on the environment and livelihood. This delay not only undermines transparency and accountability but also hampers efforts to address the immediate and long-term needs of affected populations. In the absence of timely and accurate data, the VIP remains a silent victim without any protection afforded to it,” said Arances.
 
Arances also added that in quantifying the monetary value of environmental losses, the study serves as a wake-up call, highlighting the true cost of environmental degradation and the urgent need for accountability.
 
“It is imperative that polluters, including San Miguel which is the owner of the oil, bear the responsibility for restoring ecosystems affected by their actions, and the government must act with haste to ensure that these costs are properly accounted for and addressed.”
 
Father Edwin Gariguez, Lead Convenor of Protect VIP, a coalition advocating for the protection of the VIP, lamented the reforms that have gone unaddressed a year later.
 
“As long as the VIP is not legally protected under the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System, the Verde Island Passage will never be safe. One year is ample time for meaningful progress towards protecting the VIP and ensuring its preservation for future generations, time which the government did not use properly,” said Gariguez.

By: Maria Alexandra Marmol

In a major stride towards enhancing global epidemic preparedness, Drs. Victoria May Mendoza and Renier Mendoza of the UP Diliman College of Science Institute of Mathematics (UPD-CS IM) have provided key findings on the dynamics of monkeypox spread. In collaboration with South Korean researchers, the team developed an innovative algorithm to investigate the pivotal role of self-reporting and contact tracing in the early stages of monkeypox transmission via simulations.

Their findings, published in the Journal of Medical Virology, showcased that the most crucial element affecting the size of an outbreak and its potential duration is the behavior of the primary case—that is, the infected person carrying disease into a community, and whether or not they report their status for medical attention. 

The study followed as a result of a sudden monkeypox outbreak in non-endemic countries in May of 2022. Although the majority of the infected had had no history of travelling to the endemic areas of central and western Africa, the disease continued to spread, and more and more cases were still being reported worldwide.

In South Korea, however, the first case of an individual diagnosed with monkeypox had immediately self-reported in June 2022. After travelling to Europe and returning in the same month, the primary case informed the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) of his symptoms and contact history. Subsequently, there were no other recorded secondary infections of monkeypox within the country.

To study this scenario and the other factors affecting the potential outbreak of monkeypox in a non-endemic country, the team used a mathematical model based on Gillespie’s stochastic chemical kinetics. 

Stochastic models are quantitative techniques that take into account random variables when predicting possible outcomes. While these have commonly been used to analyze the effects of other infectious diseases, this marked the first time that a stochastic model was used to simulate the spread of monkeypox in a non-endemic country.

In this manner, their algorithm considered random fluctuations in human behavior and subsequent delayed contact tracing. They then set up eight scenarios for their study, running 100,000 simulations in each to better understand the significance and impact of the primary case’s self-reporting or lack thereof.

Through these simulated outbreaks, they projected the average numbers of infected individuals depending on whether the primary case self-reported or not. In the scenario wherein the primary case self-reported, the number of infected individuals only increased by 11%.

But in the scenario wherein the primary case did not self-report, thereby further delaying contact tracing, the number of infected individuals increased by up to 40%.

The large difference in results served as both clear evidence and cautionary tales of the dangers of unreported cases. By understanding the impact of the primary case’s and infectees’ behavior, the study provides a more intuitive analysis that healthcare authorities may use as guiding information in the management and detection of possible monkeypox outbreaks in the future.

However, the researchers believed that one of the many factors dissuading people from seeking medical help—therefore greatly affecting attempts to mitigate disease—was stigma.

“The social media coverage about monkeypox spread directly or indirectly generates racist and homophobic stereotypes that worsen stigma,” they explained in their paper. They emphasized that approaches to encouraging self-reporting should be based on rights and evidence to avoid situations of hidden infected cases.

“(…) healthcare authorities must ensure confidentiality of confirmed cases and individuals under investigation, and access to health services. Moreover, prompt case finding and information campaigns must be conducted,” they urged.

The World Health Organization (WHO) now intends to replace the term “monkeypox” with “mpox” due to the racist and stigmatizing language surrounding the disease online following the 2022 outbreak. The virus itself is transmittable either through animal-to-human or human-to-human contact with bodily fluids or any contaminated material. For the 2022 outbreak, the symptoms were largely flu-like, with rashes that started around the genital area—but unlike the rashes typical to monkeypox, they appeared more similar to measles or other noninfectious conditions.

LUNGSOD NG MALOLOS– Upang panumbalikin ang mga bakawan sa mga baybaying barangay ng lalawigan, nakipagkaisa ang Pamahalaang Panlalawigan ng Bulacan sa pangunguna nina Gob. Daniel R. Fernando at Bise Gob. Alexis C. Castro sa Eagle Cement Corporation (ECC) at nakapagtanim ng paunang 1,000 bakawan sa Brgy. Masukol, Paombong noong Pebrero 21, at karagdagang 1,000 sa Brgy. Tibaguin, Hagonoy noong Biyernes.

Bahagi ang 2,000 punla ng 10,000 bakawan na nakalaan na maitanim sa mga nasabing lugar sa susunod na tatlong taon.

Ayon sa Pinuno ng Provincial Agriculture Office (PAO) Ma. Gloria SF. Carrillo, patuloy na lumiliit ang lugar ng bakawan sa lalawigan at kumakaunti ang bilang ng mga nahuhuling isda dahil wala na silang breeding area, kaya naman nababawasan din ang kita ng mga mangingisda.

“Ang mangrove ay proteksyon natin kapag may storm surge o pagtaas ng alon sa ating karagatan. Ito rin po ang natural o likas na pamahayan o tirahan ng ating mga yamang dagat. Batay po sa datos, 391.14 hectares na lamang ng mangrove ang natitira sa lalawigan at sinasabi po na .15% lamang ito ng kabuuang pambansang datos ng area planted with mangrove. Inaasahan na sa pamamagitan ng gawaing ito, mapapataas po natin ang huli ng ating mangingisda at makakatulong sa kanilang pang-araw-araw na kabuhayan,” ani Carrillo.

Samantala, bilang katiwala ng mga bakawan na magpapalaganap, magtatanim, mag-aalaga, at magpapanatili ng mga itinanim na punla, dalawang beses na tatanggap ang Samahang Mangingisda ng Isla Tibaguin (SMIT) ng tulong pinansyal mula sa Eagle Cement Corporation, una sa pagtatanim ng mga punla at matapos ang anim na buwan mula sa petsa ng pagtatanim depende sa dami ng bakawan na mabubuhay.

Dumalo rin sa pagtatanim ng bakawan sa Hagonoy sina Bokal Romina Fermin, Pinuno ng Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office Manuel Lukban at kanyang mga tauhan, mga kawani ng Bulacan Environment and Natural Resources Office, Pamahalaang Bayan ng Hagonoy at Paombong, Department of Environment and Natural Resources Region 3, Mines and Geosciences Bureau-Region 3, Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office-Bulacan, at mga Rotary Club ng Independencia, Malolos Congreso, Guiguinto Bloomingdales, at Malolos Hiyas.

Heeding the president’s call to provide assistance to victims of calamities, the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) has opened its emergency loan window until March 15 to aid GSIS members and pensioners adversely affected by the flooding in the province of Agusan del Sur.

A total of 17,079 active members and 2,298 old-age pensioners who are working or residing in the area may apply for the emergency loan. The state pension fund set aside nearly P499 million in loan window.

Active GSIS members living or working in the calamity-hit areas are eligible for the loan. They must have paid their premiums within the last six months prior to application and not be on leave of absence without pay. They should have no pending administrative or criminal case and a have a resulting net take-home pay of at least P5,000 after all the required monthly obligations have been deducted.

Old-age and disability pensioners residing in the calamity areas may also avail of the loan as long as their resulting net monthly pension after loan availment is at least 25% of their basic monthly pension. They must also have no outstanding loan being deducted from their monthly pension except pension loan.

Members with existing emergency loans may borrow up to P40,000 to settle previous loan balances, ensuring a maximum net amount of P20,000. Those without any outstanding emergency loan, including pensioners, may apply for a P20,000 loan.

The loan has a 6% interest rate and a three-year payment term.

26 February 2024

Mr. President, dear colleagues:
It is with immense pride and honor that I vote YES to this historic measure. The Philippine Maritime Zones Act, co-authored and co-sponsored by this representation, is a landmark legislation that will reinforce our rights as an archipelagic state, and will be part of the legal, political, and diplomatic strategies of the Philippines in enforcing the rule of law in our maritime domain. Binibigyang diin at ngipin ng panukalang batas na ito ang integridad ng ating teritoryo, na kinikilala ng United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), at ang makasaysayang tagumpay natin sa Permanent Court of Arbitration sa Hague noong 2016.
We congratulate the Sponsor, the Chairperson of the Senate Special Committee on Maritime and Admiralty Zones Sen. Francis Tolentino, for swiftly shepherding the passage of this measure. We thank him for specifically clarifying that our Contiguous Zone extends to a distance of 24 nautical miles and that our Exclusive Economic Zone extends to a distance of 200 nautical miles from the baselines, meaning we are claiming entitlement under UNCLOS. 
We also thank him for accepting our amendments which: 
1) clarified the acts being penalized under Section 16
of the bill and 
2) emphasized that only the high tide features of the
Kalayaan Island Group of the West Philippine Sea are capable of generating a territorial sea under Article 121 of the UNCLOS.

As we vote Yes to this measure today, we reiterate our commitment to protect our sovereign rights and preserve our territorial integrity, and our commitment to upholding an international order based on international law.
In closing, allow me to share with you an excerpt from the famous essay written by the great Filipino diplomat, statesman, and soldier Carlos P. Romulo Sr., which I think is apt for this momentous occasion:
“I am a Filipino–inheritor of a glorious past, hostage to the
uncertain future. As such I must prove equal to a two-fold task– the task of meeting my responsibility to the past, and the task of performing my obligation to the future. I sprung from a hardy race, child of many generations…By the strength of their hearts and hands, by every right of law, human and divine, this land and all the appurtenances thereof… the whole of this rich and happy land has been, for centuries without number, the land of my fathers. This land I received in trust from them and in trust will pass it to my children, and so on until the world is no more.”
I believe that this law and all our efforts to protect our territorial integrity are among the greatest legacies we can leave for future generations of Filipinos. Thank you, Mr. President, and may God bless our country.