Cayetano: People Support PNP's Efforts to Rid Country of Drugs and Contain Criminality

Cayetano: People support PNP’s efforts to rid country of drugs and contain criminality

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano expressed confidence that the nation supports PNP Chief Director General Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa and the PNP leadership in their efforts to reform the country’s police force, and to make it more effective in the war against drugs and criminality. 

"Do not despair, the people are critical but are behind you," Cayetano told Dela Rosa.

Cayetano said while he has asked Congress to act and improve the salary and benefits of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Congress has been and should be critical of the scalawags in the organization. 

“Nonetheless, it is still Congress’ duty to at least provide uniformed personnel with an amount that covers the cost of living, and to provide orphaned families of those killed or wounded in action with enough to make ends meet and send dependents to good schools,” he said.

Cayetano also urged the citizenry to continue to support the efforts of the PNP leadership to cleanse its ranks of rogue policemen and scalawags by helping identify the corrupt officers involved in criminal activities, particularly in the illegal drug trade. 

“We trust in the leadership of the PNP and we will do all to support his efforts and initiatives to reform the organization with the same intensity as Senator Panfilo Lacson did when he was Chief PNP,” Cayetano said. 

He lamented that there are still those who are part of the organization who continue to use their uniform for criminal activities, protecting drug operations and illegal gambling. 

“DG Dela Rosa’s efforts  to cleanse the ranks of PNP belie the administration’s critics that the government tolerates extrajudicial killings and corruption,” he added. 

The senator said he believes the government will not rest until the PNP has been effectively reformed, to help the President win in his fight to suppress crime and illegal drugs, problems that continue to plague our nation.#

CAPTION:

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano consoles PNP Chief Director General Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa, as he expressed his confidence that the people continue to trust and support the PNP leadership's ability to reform the police force and to make it more effective in the government's campaign against crime and illegal drugs.

Marce to hit Cebu today

 (The Freeman) | Updated November 25, 2016 - 12:00am

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It was not fog that hung over the skies of Cebu yesterday, but thick clouds brought on by tropical depression Marce, according to the state weather bureau. Storm signal number 1 was raised over Cebu City yesterday leaving hundreds of passengers stranded in the different seaports. Aldo Nelbert Banaynal

CEBU, Philippines - After causing thousands to be stranded yesterday, tropical depression Marce is expected to make landfall in Cebu early this morning.

PAGASA-Visayas weather specialist Bolivar Artiaga said Marce will continue to bring more rains and people in landslide-prone areas should be watchful.

"Magbantay g’yud ta labi na kadtong mga landslide-prone areas kay posible mag landslide tungod aning sige og uwan-uwan," said Artiaga.

He also said that yesterday almost the entire Cebu sky was engulfed by thick clouds that lowered visibility, it was not fog as many thought.

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"Di to siya fog. Tungod lang gyud to sa uwan nga niubos ang visibility. Unya dag-um sad kaayo ang Cebu," Artiaga said.

Based on the PAGASA weather bulletin as of 8 p.m. last night, Marce made landfall in Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte. The estimated rainfall amount is from moderate to heavy within the 300 kilometers of the tropical depression.

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Signal no. 1 is still in effect in Biliran, Southern Samar, Eastern Samar, Leyte, Southern Leyte, Bohol, Cebu including Bantayan and Camotes Islands, Siquijor, Negros Oriental, Negros Occidental, Iloilo, Capiz, Aklan, Antique and Guimaras in the Visayas.

Marce is expected to be out of the country by Monday afternoon.

A total of 52 vessels, 17 motorbancas and 81 cargo vessels were not allowed to travel from Cebu to other provinces due to unfavorable weather brought about by tropical depression Marce yesterday.

Paul Alcances, duty officer of the Philippine Coast Guard Cebu Station said that as of 8 p.m. last night, 2,522 passengers were stranded after vessels plying Leyte,  Bohol, Camotes,  Cagayan de Oro, Masbate, Sta. Fe in Bantayan Island,  San Carlos  City, Escalante in Negros Oriental and Dipolog routes were barred from travelling.

In the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, four flights plying the Cebu-Surigao/Surigao-Cebu routes were cancelled due to the bad weather, said MCIA corporate communication junior manager Malou Mozo.

Education is priority

Despite the tropical depression, some schools in the city will have classes today as Mayor Tomas Osmeña did not order to suspend the classes.

Saying education is his priority, Osmeña said he does not see the need to hit the panic button.

“There’s classes. The only exception would be in certain schools which are exposed to slides, the children cannot go home, or if they will have to cross the river like Barangay Buot,” he said, adding schools in barangays Busay and Sapangdaku should also suspend classes.

However, he clarified that school principals have the discretion to suspend the classes depending on the situation of the schools today.

“I have the responsibility of not hitting the panic button. If there’s a real danger, there’s always a danger, but if you talk about lesser danger, you don’t need to give many instructions because people will get confused,” he said.

Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council head Nagiel Bañacia said the suspension of classes shall be treated on a case-to-case basis depending on the situation.

With this, Bañacia encouraged the public to be alert, saying there are 19 upland barangays prone to landslides while five urban barangays are prone to flooding.

The mountain barangays that are highly susceptible of landslides are Lusaran, Binaliw, Guba, Budlaan, Malubog, Buot, Busay, Sirao, Taptap, Adlaon, Tagba-o, Tabunan, Pung-ol Sibugay, Sudlon 1, Sudlon 2, Sinsin, Buhisan, Pamutan, and Sapangdaku.

The urban barangays that are highly susceptible to flood are Bonbon, Labangon, Kasambagan, Kinasang-an, and Mabolo.

He said responders are on standby to respond to any eventualities while contractor’s association has committed to deploy their heavy equipment in case of landslides in the upland barangays.

For emergencies, he said the public may call numbers: 032-2621424 and 0923-5248222.

Mandaue City Mayor Gabriel Luigi Quisumbing yesterday declared suspension of classes in all public elementary schools due to the bad weather.

"In light of the impending landfall of TS Marce in Surigao this afternoon which is expected to bring heavy rains to Cebu, afternoon classes in Elementary Public Schools in Mandaue City are hereby cancelled," Quisumbing said.

In Talisay, the city also declared class suspension yesterday and today for all levels.

The tropical depression may bring heavy rains and the city government said this might affect Barangay Manipis which is prone to landslide, and other barangays that are prone to flooding.

Code red

The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office placed the whole province of Cebu under Code Red: Charlie.

“Base sa protocol, naa man gitawag sa alpha, bravo, charlie. Charlie naa ta, Code Red: Alert Charlie. Naa ta sa gitawag nga minimum critical preparation,” PDRRMO head Baltazar Tribunalo said.

With the storm signal, the Cebu provincial government suspended classes in all levels in public schools throughout the province yesterday and today.

Private schools, on the other hand, were advised to dismiss classes, especially in areas prone to flashfloods and/or landslides.

The Cebu provincial government fielded all heavy equipment units in the northern and southern parts of Cebu for immediate response in case of landslides. The PDRRMO also warned coastal residents of possible storm surges.

Church refuge

Meanwhile, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma yesterday asked churches and chapels throughout the province to accommodate any evacuees who may be displaced or seeking safety from landslides or floods. — Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon, Kristine B. Quintas, Le Phyllis F. Antojado, Jean Marvette A. Demecillo, Garry B. Lao, Iris Mariani B. Algabre (FREEMAN)

Philippines Near Ground Zero in Emerging Market

Bloomberg

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Asia’s emerging markets have faced outflows since Donald Trump won the US presidential election earlier this month. The Philippines is ground zero for the rout as a resurgent US dollar and Manila’s still-expensive stock market have made it even more vulnerable, with the peso plunging to an eight-year low.

The currency of the Southeast Asian nation reached 50 to the dollar for the first time this decade on Thursday and headed for its biggest annual loss since 2013. While equities are poised for their worst month since August 2013, valuations are still the priciest in Asia.

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A Bloomberg gauge of the dollar is heading for the strongest close since at least 2005 amid speculation the president-elect’s policies will push the Federal Reserve to undertake a faster pace of rate increases.

“Emerging markets globally are experiencing fund withdrawals, but what makes the Philippines different, or vulnerable, was its valuation,” said Smith Chua, chief investment officer at Bank of the Philippine Islands, the nation’s second-biggest money manager with the equivalent of $12 billion in assets under management.

“The foreign-exchange movement has also been a significant factor for overseas investors. As the year is heading to a close, some of them want to lock in their gains before the peso weakens further.”

The last time the Philippine peso neared 50 to the dollar in 2008, the global financial system was melting down and the central bank raised interest rates to defend it.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is probably watching the market as the peso didn’t go beyond the 50 level, according to Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist at BDO Unibank Inc., the nation’s biggest bank by market value.

Other currencies in the region have not been spared, with Malaysia’s ringgit approaching its weakest level since 1998 when the Asian financial crisis occurred. The Indian rupee was also trading near a record low reached in August 2013.

A look at the flow of exchange-traded funds show that in the past month the US had the biggest net inflow at US$55 billion, data compiled by Bloomberg show. By contrast, developing nations, led by China and including the Philippines, saw outflows.

The Philippine peso has weakened almost 6 per cent in 2016. Overseas investors offloaded a net $327 million from the stock market in November, set for a fourth month of sell-offs since President Rodrigo Duterte took office at the end of June.

Philippine stocks are trading at 16.29 times 12-month estimated earnings, higher than the 11.9 times for the MSCI Emerging Markets Index of shares. The nation’s dollar bonds, which were up as much as 12 per cent this year in July, have pared those gains to about 4 per cent.

Philippine equities valuation peaked at 19.6 times earnings in July as stocks rallied amid speculation Duterte’s policies would accelerate one of the region’s fastest-growing economies. Since then, concerns over his deadly drug war -- which has killed thousands -- and his anti-U.S. rhetoric have led investors to pull back.

Some foreign-exchange strategists estimated earlier this month the currency would reach the 50 level only by next year as a seasonal increase in money remitted by overseas Filipinos for Christmas spending will curb a decline in the currency.

“A weaker peso just gives more dollar value to potential investors in emerging markets,” said Manila-based Ravelas at BDO said. “In terms of our valuation in the stock market, we’re expensive.”