PHILIPPINES KEEPS TIER 1 STATUS, BUT EFFORTS TO ADDRESS TRAFFICKING LACKING — US REPORT

MANILA — The Philippines continued to fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, but failed to report vigorously probing labor trafficking crimes and holding accountable officials complicit to the crimes, the United States said in its annual report.

The Philippines kept its Tier 1 ranking in the 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report released by the US State Department. Tier 1 ranking — the highest ranking — indicates that a government has made efforts to address the problem that meet the standards of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. The Philippines has maintained its Tier 1 ranking since 2016.

“The government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts during the reporting period, considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its anti-trafficking capacity,” the report read.

Such efforts included identifying more trafficking victims than in 2020, drafting standard operating procedures on the identification and monitoring of trafficking-related corruption cases, and sentencing nearly all traffickers to significant prison terms.

It also lauded the Philippines for creating the Department of Migrant Workers, supporting more victims in participating in the criminal process, and increasing funding to the interagency anti-trafficking council.

DMW is mandated to oversee law enforcement action against illegal recruitment agencies, create a database to track recruiters involved in trafficking crimes, and raise awareness of trafficking indicators among migrant workers

NDRRMC SAYS READY TO REPLACE NAT'L TASK FORCE VS COVID-19

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) on Wednesday said it was ready to take on the functions of the National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19.

“Handang-handa, kasi 'yung NTF noon ay NDRRMC din naman 'yun, pare-pareho yung ano, yung bumubuong mga ahensya niyan, at ang chairperson ng NTF ay 'yung chairperson din ng NDRRMC,” the disaster agency's executive director Ricardo Jalad told ABS-CBN's TeleRadyo.

Malacañang this week announced that the health department would use the NDRRMC platform and reconstitute the member agencies of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF).

"The platform will replace the National Task Force Against COVID-19 (NTF) to integrate it with the regular processes," the Palace said.

The previous Duterte administration also floated the idea of replacing the NTF with the NDRRMC during its last Cabinet meeting, Jalad said.

But he said the NDRRMC might need to reconfigure its organizational structure to respond well to the lingering pandemic.

“Doon sa dating structure ng National Task Force, meron doon halimbawang Task Group Resource Management and Logistics, Task Force Facilities, so anong gagawin doon? Pag-uusapan pa 'yan, 'yung detalye na 'yan sa mga meetings,” Jalad said.

BLENDED LEARNING TO CONTINUE IN 'VERY SPECIFIC AREAS' IN NOVEMBER: MARCOS

MANILA - President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday said blended learning would continue in "very specific areas" come November, when most schools in the country would be mandated to fully resume face-to-face classes.

The Department of Education (DepEd) needs to address the lack of classrooms, teachers, and other concerns in several areas, Marcos said.

“Ang gawin na lang natin [ay] i-identify saan ‘yung areas na magbe-blended learning para maka-focus tayo," the President said during his third Cabinet meeting.

"Ihanda 'yung mga devices at mga kailangan nila na noong pandemic hindi nasu-supplyan sa mga bata,” he said.

“We continue with blended learning pero in very specific places lamang. As much as possible, face-to-face na talaga."

Malacañang has yet to give a list of areas that would be exempted from the DepEd's directive to do away with blended learning after October 31.

Blended learning will have to continue if the government fails to address several concerns including the repair of school buildings and internet connectivity, Marcos said.

Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte said a recent survey showed that majority of the education sector stakeholders prefer having face-to-face classes.

The DepEd will prepare a plan on what the sector will do after October 31, Duterte said.

The agency awaits the guidance of Duterte on the President's order, said Education Undersecretary Epimaco Densing.

PHILIPPINES HOPES TO REPATRIATE PINOYS FROM SRI LANKA BY END OF JULY

MANILA – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Wednesday they hope to repatriate Filipinos from Sri Lanka by the end of the month.

Prices of goods in Sri Lanka continue to soar, even after the resignation of its former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Undersecretary Eduardo De Vega told TeleRadyo that they hope to buy tickets soon for Filipinos who want to leave Sri Lanka via commercial flight.

“Ang ginagawa namin kasi eh, sana magkaroon ng sweeper flight pero mahirap po mag-arrange niyan dahil nga sa situation Sir Lanka…eh kasi maraming requirements kailangan so magkakaroon yan ng delay pa naman siguro, magkakaantala sa papers,” he said.

“Kaya ang gagawin na lang namin, kukuha kaming funding para sa commercial na lang kasi may flight pa naman eh,” he added.

“Ang target date namin sana, minimum we, kasi July 20 ngayon, ang gusto namin bago matapos ang July may nakauwi na. Dapat kasi ang original sweeper flight na iniisip namin, first week of August pero mukhang hindi na mangyari yun so bago pa noon kailangan may na-fund na na ticket.”

De Vega said about 115 out of 700 Filipinos living in Sri Lanka have said they want to go to the Philippines.

UN WARNS HEAT WAVES WILL HAPPEN MORE OFTEN UNTIL 2060S

Heat waves such as the one stifling western Europe are becoming more frequent and the trend is set to continue until at least the 2060s, the United Nations said Tuesday.

The current heat wave should act as a wake-up call for countries pumping ever more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, the UN's World Meteorological Organization said.

"They are becoming more frequent and this negative trend will continue... at least until the 2060s, independent of our success in climate mitigation efforts," WMO chief Petteri Taalas told a press conference in Geneva.

"Thanks to climate change we have started breaking records... In the future these kinds of heatwaves are going to be normal, and we will see even stronger extremes," he added.

"Emissions are still growing and therefore it's not sure that we would see the peak in the 2060s if we are not able to bend this emission growth development, especially in the big Asian countries which are the largest emitters."

The WMO held a joint press conference with the World Health Organization, its sister UN agency, about the fierce heat wave hitting western Europe.

The heat wave fueled ferocious wildfires before sweeping north and pushing temperatures in Britain over 40 degrees Celsius for the first time.

"We are expecting the peak to be today across France, the UK, possibly even Switzerland," said Robert Stefanski, the WMO's applied climate services chief.

Europe's heat record was broken last year when the thermometer hit 48.8C in Sicily in southern Italy.

DEPED REVIEW ON K TO 12 PROGRAM UNDERWAY, SAYS OFFICIAL

MANILA — The Department of Education's review on the K to 12 program is underway, Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III said Wednesday.

sBased on a recent Pulse Asia survey commissioned by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, 44 percent of Filipinos are dissatisfied with the K-12 system. This is higher than the 28 percent dissatisfaction rate in a 2019 survey.

The agency had ordered a review of the Kinder to Grade 10 program before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s administration, Densing said.

"I believe they're now finalizing their assessment and will be proposing revisions any time soon," he told ANC's Headstart.

Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte has also ordered a review of Grades 11 to 12, Densing added.

"Hopefully we’ll have the immediate results as soon as possible," he said.

Densing said his personal opinion was English should be taught from Kindergarten instead of the mother tongue, which is mandated under the current curriculum.

"I would want to say we use regular English language as medium of instruction, with the mother tongue as an exception," he said. "Use mother tongue only as an exception in case that area is not really introduced to English."

Densing added that teachers should be trained yearlong instead of being given a week of seminars.

COA GAVE ROBREDO’S OVP A NOTICE OF DISALLOWANCE. WHAT HAPPENS NOW?

MANILA — The Commission on Audit issued the Office of the Vice President, then led by former Vice President Leni Robredo, a notice of disallowance over its hiring of a legal consultant without the permission of the state auditing body and the Office of the Solicitor General.

"In view of the lack of the written conformity and acquiescence of the Solicitor General and the written concurrence of COA, and despite having legal officers, payments made to the legal consultant are considered irregular and unnecessary expenditures," the COA said in its 2021 audit report on the OVP.

In its defense, the OVP said it requested the Office of the President to create third-level positions for a core group of policy advisers, including the legal consultant who was recommended by Robredo to be appointed as undersecretary.

"However, OP did not act upon the request which compelled the office to resort to a consultancy arrangement," the OVP said in comments to COA’s findings.

But state auditors were not satisfied with this explanation and maintained that the expenses paid to the legal consultant should be disallowed as it issued a notice of disallowance on April 5, 2022.

The COA's notice of disallowance has been lifted after it granted the OVP's appeal on June 29 "considering the absence of bad faith, malice or gross negligence in the transaction," Robredo's spokesperson Barry Gutierrez said in a statement.

Gutierrez added that it is now under automatic review by the COA.

According to COA rules, appeals are taken up by directors who have jurisdiction over the agency being audited. Decisions of directors on the appeals may be elevated to the COA’s Adjudication and Settlement Board or to the commission proper.

In this case, the commission proper, composed of COA chairperson Jose Calida and COA commissioners Roland Pondoc and Mario Lipana, will take up any appeals arising from a decision adverse to Robredo’s OVP by a director who would review the disallowance.

NFA EXECS TOLD: RETURN P1.37 MILLION TRANSPORT ALLOWANCE

MANILA — The Commission on Audit (COA) has recommended the refund of transportation allowances provided to some officials of the National Food Authority (NFA), whose offices were assigned government vehicles last year.

In an annual audit report of the agency, state auditors said that executive and managerial employees of the NFA central office and regional office in Metro Manila claimed a total of P1.373 million in transportation allowances despite the motor vehicles assigned to their offices.

The COA cited a 1998 ruling of the Supreme Court (SC) stating that government officials with assigned vehicles for their official use are not entitled to collect transportation allowance, whether or not they actually used the vehicle.

It recommended to the NFA management to require the concerned officials to immediately refund the transportation allowances claimed in 2021 as well as discontinue the practice in compliance with existing policies.

In a response, the NFA said the subject motor vehicles were assigned to the agency’s departments and not for the exclusive use of the officials.

It said the vehicles were used by employees in the performance of the official functions of their departments.

GOVERNMENT CRACKING DOWN ON DIGITAL ILLEGAL RECRUITMENT

MANILA — The newly created Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is launching a crackdown against illegal online recruitment, which the agency described as the new battlefield.

In an interview with “The Chiefs” aired on One News last Monday night, Migrant Workers Secretary Susan Ople stressed the government’s need for a campaign primarily focused against illegal online recruitment.

Ople said the creation of a task force against online illegal recruitment is one of the priority programs of the DMW.

“What will make it different (from other illegal recruitment task forces) is that we will look at online illegal recruitment because what is happening now is that online illegal recruitment’s victims have become exponential,” she said in English and Filipino.

She added that illegal recruiters could just post a non-existent overseas job offer and just directly message all those who would comment and collect fees through e-payment.

In one day, an illegal recruiter could victimize an average of 500 aspiring overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), according to the DMW chief.

“We really need to address online illegal recruitment,” she said, adding that the DMW is looking at the possibility of using the laws of other countries to accelerate the campaign.

“So we need to create a task force for a very focused campaign that will make us a different platform, we know where the battle is and right now we know the battlefield is really online,” she said.

“The order (for the creation of the task force) is now being prepared so I can sign it and we can start on that front,” she added.

GOVERNMENT SEEKS RAIL FINANCING FROM OTHER COUNTRIES

MANILA — The government will look for financing arrangements from other countries for railway projects that China has offered to finance at exorbitant rates, a finance official said yesterday.

While the Marcos administration will still pursue negotiations with China for the railway projects, Finance Undersecretary Mark Dennis Joven said alternative funding sources would also be explored.

Earlier, the government cancelled the financing application for three railway projects with a total cost of P276 billion but stressed it remains open to renegotiation.

President Marcos said that with the project’s staggering cost, the government may consider official development assistance or public-private partnerships to put the projects back on track.

China wants to charge an interest rate of three percent, which would be too costly for the government. In comparison, Japan was offering 0.1 percent.

“Yes, of course (we will consider). It should consider issues such as project cost versus financing cost,” Joven said in a Viber message, referring to possible alternative financing plan.

“Not only these countries, but other countries which offer financing facilities as well,” he said.

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NAMFREL URGES CONGRESS TO HOLD BARANGAY AND SK POLLS AS SCHEDULED

MANILA — As lawmakers are pushing to postpone the barangay and sangguniang kabataan elections (BSKE), the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) is calling on Congress to hold the long-delayed polls as scheduled this December.

“The will of the people, as expressed through the ballot, is the very essence of democracy. This should not be set aside again,” NAMFREL said in a statement on Wednesday.

The statement comes after multiple lawmakers have filed bills in both the House of Representatives and the Senate seeking to postpone yet again the conduct of the BSKE, which was originally scheduled for May 2020.

In 2019, former President Rodrigo Duterte asked lawmakers to suspend the polls to allow the elected officials to complete their projects so instead of a three-year term, the officials have now held their posts for five years.

This would further be extended should authorities decide to postpone the polls to be held at a later date.

While NAMFREL noted that the country’s constitution allows legislation to determine the term of elected barangay officials, it also said “this does not mean that Congress should again postpone the BSKE.”

“Notably, the law rescheduling the BSKE to December 5, 2022 only amends but does not repeal the requirement under R.A. 9164 that synchronized BSKEs be held in October every three years,” NAMFREL said.

NAMFREL also emphasized that the barangay is the “primary planning and implementing unit” of the government at the community level.

VOTER REGISTRATION TARGET REACHED – COMELEC

MANILA — With a few more days left before the end of the voter registration period, the target number of registrants for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections in December has been reached.

“We have reached our target… In the May 9 elections, we were at least 65 million plus. We are expecting to be at 66 million. Right now, for the regular voters we have reached that mark, the 500,000 mark, and we are on track for the 23 million expected voters for SK elections,” Commission on Elections (Comelec) acting spokesman Rex Laudiangco said.

He said Comelec offices nationwide recorded 1,073,847 new registrants as of Monday.

Up to 547,389 of the registrants are aged 18 to 30 while 91,079 are 31 years old and above.

Laudiangco said the Comelec has processed 2,256,868 applications related to the barangay and SK polls.

The poll body urged the public to avoid the rush and visit local and satellite Comelec offices as the registration period will run only until July 23.

LPA, SOUTHWEST MONSOON TO BRING MORE RAINS

MANILA — Generally fair weather is expected over most parts of the country as the low-pressure area left the Philippine area of responsibility yesterday.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said the ridge of a high-pressure area will bring mostly clear skies and warmer temperatures over Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon.

Localized thunderstorms may still prevail during the afternoons and evenings and bring scattered rainshowers, especially in the eastern sections of the Visayas and Mindanao.

PAGASA said the low-pressure area off the coast of Mindoro exited the Philippine area of responsibility yesterday morning.

Still, the trough of a low-pressure area will bring scattered rains over Palawan.

Temperatures in Metro Manila will range between 25 to 34 degrees Celsius.

SPORTS

CEBU-BASED DRAGON BOAT TEAM WINS GOLD MEDAL IN FLORIDA TILT

The Philippine Accessible Disability Services, Inc. or PADS Dragon boat team won its first gold medal at the 13th International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) Club Crew World Championship in Florida.

They recently clinched the top spot for the 2,000-meter distance partial paradragon category.

"Dreams do come true!" said JP Maunes, the team's founder and manager.

The PADS dragon boat team will compete in other categories of the competition.

In 2019, the team also won gold in the same competition held in Thailand.

They are composed of 25-members who are mostly persons with disabilities.

INDICATORS

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

When a friend makes a mistake, a friend remains a friend, and a mistake remains a mistake. - Shimon Peres