President Aquino urges midwives to sustain their excellence and embody the core values of integrity, professionalism and accountability

President Benigno S. Aquino III urged the country's midwives to sustain their excellence in accordance to global standards, and embody the core values of integrity, professionalism, and accountability.

"Midwives, being key providers of health care to mothers and newborns, are in the frontline of our goal for an empowered, productive citizenry," the Chief Executive said in his message to the Philippine League of Government and Private Midwives Inc. (PLGPMI) on the occasion of the 14th General Assembly of Midwives.

The PLGPMI opened on Wednesday the 14th General Assembly of Midwives at the Legend Palawan Hotel, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan. The event, which has for its theme "Iwagayway ang Kalusugan Pangkalahatan ng mga Ina, Anak at Midwives," would end on Saturday.

"May this gathering further strengthen your League, as you equip your members with advanced, relevant knowledge and skills that redound to the welfare of your patients," the President said.

"The Filipino people are called upon in this era of daylight to uphold our movement for change with passion and dedication. Let us be steadfast on the straight and righteous path of equitable progress," he noted.

The assembly aims to equip the midwives with the necessary skills in accordance to the Global Standards set by the International Confederation of Midwives through the enactment of appropriate legislative and regulatory measures.


Philippine-Malaysia relations remain strong despite Sabah conflict, says Palace

Close relations between the Philippines and Malaysia remains the same despite the recent conflict in Sabah, Malacanang said on Wednesday.

“There has been no change in the relationship with Malaysia,” Presidential spokesman Edwin lacierda said in a press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday.

“There has been no strain with our relationship in Malaysia. We recognize that this was an attempt by a few that should not affect the relationship of the whole.”

Lacierda was responding to questions whether the conflict in Sabah has affected the relations between the two countries. Malaysian forces assaulted a group of Filipinos claiming Sabah as part of the Sulu Sultanate.

The violence resulted to hundreds of Filipinos living or working in Sabah going home to avoid the conflict or being rounded up by Malaysian authorities.

At the same time, Lacierda made an assurance that the Philippine government continues to help Filipinos affected by the conflict.

“If they need assistance, we will provide them; if they need employment, we will help them; if they need to go back to Sabah, we will provide legal documentation for those who would like to return to Sabah,” he told Palace reporters.

Asked if the government could provide jobs to thousands of returnees from Sabah, Lacierda said several government agencies are working together to address the problem.

While the government can’t provide jobs to displaced Filipinos in one day, agencies such as the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Overseas Filipinos Welfare Administration (OWWA) are doing everything to help Filipinos who lost their jobs in Sabah.

The government is assisting those who want to return to their respective provinces and also working to help those who had opted to return to Sabah.

“Most of them may mga probinsya. Alam naman nila saan sila galing, so umuuwi sila at saka dumidiretso sila sa probinsya. But they leave with us their numbers in case some of them would like to go back to Sabah,” Lacierda said.

Some estimates said around 100,000 Filipinos are expected to return to Mindanao as a result of the instability in Sabah. But Lacierda said the government has a lesser figure than the current estimates.

The Palace official also made an assurance that regardless of the figures, the government is ready to assist displaced Filipinos returning from Sabah.


Palace: Transition Commission could effectively draft Bangsamoro Basic Law

Malacanang expressed optimism that the Transition Commission (TransCom) could do its mandate of drafting the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law based on the Framework Agreement agreed upon by the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) last year.

“Ang mandato nila [TransCom] is to come up with the Basic Law. Yun ang magiging trabaho nila: to draft the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law with provisions consistent with the 2012 Framework Agreement,” Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a press briefing in Malacanang on Wednesday.

“Ang kailangan natin dito gumawa ng Basic Law. So I think that’s something that is doable. All the members of Transition Commission are members of the Bangsamoro. So I don’t see any problem there. They will be discussing it,” he said on the first en banc of the TransCom.

He said that the discussions will push through because the common aspiration of both sides is peace and development in Mindanao.

With regards to the postponement of the peace talks that might affect the timeline in crafting the Basic Law, Lacierda said the government thinks otherwise, echoing the statement of the MILF saying that the final peace pact will be signed.

Asked to comment whether the recent dissolution of the Malaysian parliament to give way for an election may affect the peace talks, Lacierda said he can’t speculate on the outcome of Malaysia’s political process.

The election in Malaysia is supposed to be held within 60 days from the dissolution of the parliament.

“I can’t speculate right now as to whether it will have an effect on the peace talks. But, as a matter of policy, Malaysia has been our facilitator for these talks and they have been very helpful,” he said.

Personal information updating, editing now available at Pag-IBIG Fund 

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, April 4 (PIA) -- Pag-IBIG Fund members who have already complied with the Online Membership Registration via www.pagibigfund.gov.ph but had inadvertently encoded erroneous information on their personal data may now request for the editing or updating of their personal profile by accomplishing the Members Change of Information Form (MCIF).

The MCIF is a downloadable form which must be signed by both the member and the Employer or the duly authorized signatory of the Head of Office (if applicable), to attest the change of information made by the said employee.

Furthermore, Ferdinand Saniel, Department Manager III of Pag-IBIG Cagayan de Oro Branch, said that Pag-IBIG Fund members who wish to update their Civil Status and/or beneficiaries may also request for the editing or updating of their personal information by submitting a duly accomplished MCIF and a photocopy of his/her Marriage Contract and/or the Birth Certificate of his/her beneficiaries (i.e., children). In cases where photocopies of the said documents are submitted, the original copy must be presented, for authentication.

Moreover, Pag-IBIG Fund members who are requesting for the editing in the spelling of their complete name and/or date of birth must submit also a duly accomplished MCIF and a photocopy of his/her Birth Certificate and surrender his/her Pag-IBIG Fund Transaction Card, prior to the reprinting of his/her new Pag-IBIG Fund Transaction Card. In cases of loss in the previously issued Pag-IBIG Fund Transaction Card, a duly notarized Affidavit of Loss must be submitted.

The MCIF and the aforementioned required documents can be submitted to Ms. Katherine May Bautista or Mr. Dante Pacana at the Marketing and Enforcement Division of the Pag-IBIG Fund Cagayan de Oro Branch, Pag-IBIG Fund Building, J.R. Borja Mortola Sts., Cagayan de Oro City. (Gilbert Francis Uy/Pag-IBIG Fund-CdeO/RTP/PIA-10) 

DOLE to grow bamboo trees along CdeO riverbanks

By Apipa P. Bagumbaran

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, April 4 (PIA) -- Around 1,000 bamboo seedlings will be grown by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) along the riverbanks of Cagayan River starting this month.

The tree growing initiative called “Iswag Kagay-an” will kick-off on April 11 in Barangay Mambuaya, the beginners’ point of the white water rafting here.

It will be participated by local folks including members of the Oro Association of Rafters, river guides and their dependents.

Atheneus Vasallo, officer-in-charge of the DOLE Western Misamis Oriental Provincial Office, said the greening effort is part of the advocacy of the Department to protect the environment.

The project which seeks to grow bamboo trees along the denuded side of the river to replenish the trees destroyed by typhoons Sendong and Pablo is also supportive to the greening program of President Benigno S. Aquino III.

Vasallo said the DOLE has organized the dependents of the river guides into an association to care for and ensure the survival of the planted bamboo trees.

In return the DOLE will provide assistance to the association and train them on product development to enhance their existing livelihood on souvenir making and augment their income.

Lawyer Johnson Cañete, DOLE Director for Northern Mindanao, has turned-over the check amounting to P419,350 to the Cagayan de Oro River Guides and Vendors association last April 1 during the launching of the Iswag Kagay-an greening initiative.

According to Vasallo, the project will also be replicated in the neighboring riverbanks in the city. (APB/PIA)

Catarman LGU gets new liquid quick freezer from DA

By Jorie C. Valcorza

CAMIGUIN, April 4 (PIA) – A new cold storage facility will soon rise in Catarman town, following the forging of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for the acquisition of a Liquid Quick Freezer (LQF).

The machine has a capacity to produce three tons of ice daily and its processing takes about two hours, done in batches of 16 blocks of ice, weighing around eight kilos each.

Municipal Agriculturist Teodora Gadgude says the project will come of great help to the local fisherfolks, whose volume of catch are mostly pelagic fishic, like tuna.

The machine, according to Gadgude, can also extend the shelf life of meat and vegetables packed in a vacuum sealed plastic.

The LQF is a commitment of the Department of Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala during his recent visit in the province. 

The local government unit for its part has already identified the perfect site for the new facility.

Under the MOA, the DA will donate the LQF, complete with accessories, while the recipient on the other hand will provide for the facility or warehouse that is also compliant to the needed electrical and safety requirements.

The establishment of semi-processing and cold storage facilities such as this, is under the national cold chain program of the government, aimed at increasing small farmers and fisherfolks (SFF) income, as well as, in meeting market demand, for a year-round supply of commodities by extending the shelf life of agriculture and fishery products. (JCV/PIA)