This culture of violence must stop now! We strongly denounce the use of inhumane means because it has no space in a civilized and modern society where we live in.
Violence is not the way to foster brotherhood and camaraderie. There are other more humane ways where we can cultivate brotherhood and unity.
We call on the authorities to ensure that those behind this senseless act be brought to justice and punished for their crimes.
Senator Bam Aquino is alarmed by reports that some emission testing centers engage in illegal activities such as non-appearance scheme or ghost testing of motor vehicles in exchange for additional fees.
“There had been reports that the private and public emission testing centers in LTO are remiss in their duties in properly implementing the law through the issuance of false emission compliance certificates (ECCs),” Aquino said.
In line with this, Aquino filed a resolution seeking to look into the efficiency of emission testing centers in the issuance of ECC as one of the basic requirements of the Land Transportation Office before a vehicle is processed for renewal registration.
Aquino said illegal activities by some testing centers defeat the purpose of Republic Act 9749 or the Philippine Clean Air Act, which was passed in 1999 to maintain the quality of air and protect human life from the dangers of air pollution.
Under the Clean Air Act, a National Motor Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program has been established to promote the efficient and safe operation of motor vehicles and ensure the reduction of emissions from motor vehicles.
As part of the program, vehicles are required to undergo inspection and maintenance program as a requisite for renewal of registration and mandatory inspection to determine compliance with the in-use emission standards.
“The national government should be able to provide a quick systematic solution to the proliferation of these false ECCs in order to promote overall motor vehicle safety and prescribe an intensive convergence program towards the full implementation of the Philippine Clean Air Act of 1999,” Aquino said.
Aquino said continuing increase in motor vehicles, lack of mass public transit system, and worsening traffic conditions further contribute to increasing air pollution.
“Needless to state, all motor vehicles (MV) must comply with exhaust emission standards prior to registration and operation in public highways,” he said.
With the increasing air pollution, the Philippines is now ranked 114th in the recent Environmental Performance Index (EPI) report released by Yale University in terms of environmental performance of a state’s policies
In terms of air quality, the Philippines ranked 85th and 110th in health impacts.
According to latest data from the Department of Health (DOH), 60 percent of lung cancer cases and other respiratory related diseases in the Philippines are because of air pollution.
Senator Bam Aquino has filed a bill seeking to establish a Big Data Center that will hasten government’s response time during disasters and disease breakouts.
“If Big Data is available, government can be more responsive in real-time, especially during disasters,” Aquino said in Senate Bill 2214.
Through the Big Data Center, Aquino said pertinent information crucial to delivery of services during calamities could be facilitated and disseminated quickly.
“With the help of the Big Data Center, disaster response teams will be armed by important information and otherdata needed during emergency situations and calamities,” Aquino added.
Entitled the Big Data Act of 2014, the bill is calling for the establishment of a Big Data Center where large volume of datasets used for research and development and other important purposes will be facilitated and protected.
Aquino added the bill has enough security measures to ensure that data being stored will remain private and out of prying eyes.
“Now that information is almost open to anyone due to the advent of smartphones, Internet and other technology, the Big Data Center provides a blanket of protection on our privacy,” Aquino stressed.
In his measure, Aquino emphasized the need for a National Big Data Center where datasets whose “volume is beyond the ability of typical database software tools to capture, store, manage and analyze within a tolerable elapsed period of time.”
“An establishment of a technology center that facilitates Big Data is proposed in order for policy and services to be more relevant to the changing needs of the people,” Aquino said.
At present, Aquino said Big Data from information-sensing smart phones, social media and the Internet, remote sensing and climate sensors is getting to be more and more available.
However, the senator very little has been done to create more value out of Big Data that will help policy makers to be more responsive to the needs of the public on near real time.
“The Philippine Big Data Center Bill proposes an infrastructure where Big Data is utilized for research and development, and invention and innovation,” he said.
According to the bill, the Center will be established to develop a range of standards and use software and other tools for analytics on massive amounts of data being generated from the use of Internet and other technology.
The Center will be responsible for disseminating the knowledge gained from its research activities to stakeholders in both the public and private sectors to strengthen policy making and industrial competitiveness.
Aquino said the passage of this bill would pioneer and institutionalize a technological breakthrough that supports public and private sectors and strengthens government’s efforts for more advanced, sustained and inclusive developmental progress.
Senator Bam Aquino is pushing for innovative, sustainable and cheaper ways to mitigate devastating impacts of natural disasters and calamities that usually lead to loss of lives, livelihood and income opportunities for businesses.
In his Senate Bill No. 2179 or the National Coastal Greenbelt Act of 2014, Aquino calls for the establishment of 100-meter greenbelts of mangroves and beach forests along coastlines to mitigate the devastating impacts of waves and storm surges.
“The establishment of science-based coastal greenbelts is expected to protect biodiversity, improve fisheries productivity, and enhance the tourism and livelihood potential of the area,” Aquino said.
Aquino made the proposal in the aftermath of super-typhoon Yolanda that killed thousands of people and left billions of pesos in damages in Eastern Visayas, particularly in Leyte.
“Aside from high number of casualties, the super typhoon also caused the shutdown of businesses and loss of jobs and other livelihood in devastated areas,” Aquino said.
The lawmaker stressed that the cost of establishing coastal greenbelts to protect against storm surge and tsunami would only be a fraction of the damages that could be brought by the yearly battering of typhoons.
“The Philippines is battered by more than 20 typhoons a year, with an increasing number in the super-typhoon category,” Aquino said.
“These could bring as much damage as Yolanda, which inflicted an economic loss of more than P500 billion.”
Compared to the cost of destruction brought by typhoons, Aquino said total valuation of mangroves is estimated at US$14,000-16,000 per hectare, of which about 80 percent is for coastal protection value.
Based on scientific studies, Aquino explained that a 100-meter greenbelt of mangroves could reduce wave height of wind and swell waves by 13-66 percent while storm surge can decrease by 5-50 centimeters per kilometer width of mangroves.
Also, surface wind waves can be reduced by more than 75 percent over one kilometer of mangroves while storm surges can be lessened by 50 percent by 7-kilometer band of mangroves.
Aquino added that coastal forests could reduce the force, depth and velocity of a tsunami, lessening damage to property and reducing loss of life.
“We set aside 130 billion pesos in the 2014 budget for the rehabilitation,” Aquino said. “We should definitely set aside in the greening of our coastline.”
The bill also mandates the creation of the National Coastal Greenbelt Program shall provide the agency mandates, funding, and general guiding principles for implementing a science-based and cost-effective program.
The P2 billion that Janet Lim Napoles wants to return is nothing compared to what she earned from her illegal transactions with the government.
This is more than the P10 billion that was stolen from the public due to the PDAF scam. The amount doesn’t include properties purchased by Napoles using the public coffers.
We call on the government to hasten the trial of Napoles so that we can pinpoint and recover the money she pocketed from the government, up to the last centavo.
Eight deadliest sea disasters happened in the country in the past two decades, including the worst maritime tragedy in history when MV Dona Paz collided with a tanker, killing more than 4,000 people in 1987.
A year after, MV Dona Marilyn, a sister ship of the ill-fated MV Dona Paz, sank after it was caught in Typhoon Unsang, killing 389 passengers.
In 1998, 150 passengers of MV Princess of the Orient perished after sank while sailing to Cebu during a typhoon off of Fortune Island in Batangas.
Also included in the list of maritime disasters were M/B Sunjay on January 15, 2006, M/B Leonida II on November 25, 2006, M/V Catalyn on June 10, 2007, M/V Blue Water Princess I on July 12, 2007 and M/V Don Wilfredo on February 14, 2008.
To avoid repeat of such incidents, Senator Bam Aquino calls for an investigation on the seaworthiness of maritime vessels to ensure safe and efficient operations and avoid maritime accidents as the country especially enters its rainy season.
“The national government has the duty to implement positive measures that can alleviate, if not resolve, the recurring maritime accidents over the past decades,” Aquino said in his resolution.
“It should give appropriate emphasis on the seaworthiness of the vessels being used by the shipping companies and must demonstrate stronger commitment in the effective implantation of the laws in order to safeguard the safety of the public,” he added.
Aquino said under the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, carriers are bound before and at the beginning of the voyage to exercise due diligence to make the ship seaworthy.
“For a vessel to be seaworthy, it must be adequately equipped for the voyage and manned with a sufficient number of competent officers and crew,” the senator said.
Failure of a common carrier to maintain in seaworthy condition the vessel involved in its contract of carriage is a clear breach of its duty prescribed in Article 1755 of the Civil Code.
“The public relies on the care and skill of common carriers in the vigilance over the goods and safety of the passengers, especially because transportation has become more rapid, more complicated and somehow more hazardous,” Aquino stressed.
Instead of the ‘up to’ phrase, Senator Bam Aquino wants telecommunication companies to put average minimum Internet speed on all forms of advertisements so as not to mislead subscribers.
“We are pushing changes in advertising. It would be good for our consumers if what is communicated is clearer,” said Aquino, after the hearing of the Committee on Trade, Commerce and Entrepreneurship on the slow and expensive Internet connection in the country.
During the hearing, Aquino said part of the consumers’ dissatisfaction is that flyers and other advertisements claim speeds of up to between 5 to 10 Mbps but experience just the average when they subscribed.
“Why can’t we just advertise the average speed? The one that I will get for 24 hours of the day rather than the one that I will get three or four hours of the day,” Aquino asked.
“In the same way, we ask people selling products to just share the common experience rather than the special experience,” he added.
The senator also wants the average minimum speed to be printed in large fonts instead of fine print so consumers will be properly informed of what they are getting from Internet providers.
Department of Justice (DOJ) Assistant Secretary Geronimo Sy supported Aquino’s call, saying the agency did the same with the budget promo fares by airlines years ago.
“It’s a no-brainer for Telcos to actually adjust their advertising,” said Sy, head of the DOJ’s Office of Competition.
Sy also promised the committee to issue an advisory to Telcos to put average Internet speeds on their advertisements.
In addition, Aquino will push for the amendment of a 78-year-old law making Internet a basic service, giving government greater control over pricing and quality.
“We’ll push for the amendment of Public Service Act which is a 1936 law. We’re talking about the high-tech information age and we’re still using a 1936 law,” said Aquino.
Aquino also called on the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to check if indeed congestion is the main cause of slow Internet.
Aquino would also push for added budget for NTC for purchase of added equipment to monitor the Internet service in the country.
Ten of the poorest provinces in the country are in Mindanao, with Lanao del Norte leading the way with a 67.3 percent poverty incidence.
Aside from Lanao del Norte, Maguindanao, Zamboanga del Norte, Saranggani, North Cotabato, Bukidnon, Lanao del Norte, Camiguin, Sultan Kudarat and Sulu also made the list of the top 16 poorest provinces.
The problem exists despite Mindanao’s vast natural resources, which remained untapped until now due to the decades-long conflict in the region.
However, Senator Bam Aquino believes that things will turn for the better for Mindanao with the imminent passage of the Bangsamoro political entity and the ASEAN Integration in 2015.
“The expected approval of the Bangsamoro political entity and the ASEAN Integration in 2015 will turn Mindanao into a magnet for businesses and investors,” said Aquino.
Aquino added that the 1st Mindanao Social Business Summit, which will be held from June 4-6 at the Central Mindanao University in Maramag, Bukidnon, will play a key role in addressing problems hounding the region.
Carrying the theme, “Wealth Creation with Justice and Peace through Social Entrepreneurship,” the summit’s goal is to achieve sustainable peace and prosperity in Mindanao thru social innovation and entrepreneurship.
The summit will advocate for partnerships among stakeholders the need for a holistic support mechanism towards inclusive growth to reduce poverty and discuss the implications of development in Mindanao for social entrepreneurship.
During the summit, Aquino will discuss the importance of inclusive growth and social entrepreneurship in reducing poverty.
A former social entrepreneur before becoming a lawmaker, Aquino will share his experience with the Hapinoy program, which he co-founded, to delegates from the business and government sectors, officials from different universities and other NGOs from Mindanao.
Aquino will also tackle his inclusive growth bills that will help boost micro, small and medium enterprises, leading to creation of jobs and other livelihood for millions of Filipinos.
Just like its weathermen, Senator Bam Aquino warned that the country would lose many of its air-traffic controllers due to lack of benefits, ideal working conditions and job security.
“It was brought to my attention that some of our air-traffic controllers have left for greener pastures abroad while others plan to join them if their working situation will not improve in the near future,” said Aquino.
“The exodus of air-traffic controllers will mean another brain drain for the country. Also, it will slow down the operation of airports and hinder the country’s tourism, which has been steadily growing in the past years,” he added.
According to documents submitted to Aquino by concerned employees of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, about 195 of the country’s 500 air-traffic controllers hired by CAAP from the Civil Aviation Training Center are on job-order status.
“Since the CAAP was created last 2008, no CATC graduate has been issued an appointment or not one became a regular employee,” Aquino said.
“They are hired as air traffic controller assistants but they perform the duties and responsibilities that of a regular rated ATC once they obtain a rating,” the senator added.
The lack of job security has forced five experienced ATC to leave the country for a better job abroad, leaving other ATCs with additional workload that leads to longer working hours.
“This is very unproductive and at the same time dangerous because it causes undue stress to our air traffic controllers. In our job where safety is the top priority, a sound mind and relaxed body is a necessity,” Aquino said.
The CATC cannot provide immediate replacements to the posts vacated by several ATCs because the job requires special skills and time, Aquino emphasized.
Before the situation worsens, Aquino called on the CAAP and the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) to look into the plight of the country’s ATCs before things turn for the worse.
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