Category: General

MANILA : The Department of Justice on Friday said an Australian national was sentenced to reclusion perpetua by a Bulacan court for the crime rape.

In a 24-page judgment, the Regional Trial Court Branch 78 of the City of Malolos found Ronald Ian Cole guilty beyond reasonable doubt and ordered him to pay his victim PHP225,000 in damages, in addition to the jail sentence.

Cole (alias Ric), 75, who has lived in the Philippines since 2011 under a special resident retirement visa, was accused for repeated sexual abuse.

The rape started when the victim, who resided in the house owned by Cole in the City of San Jose del Monte, was offered medicine by the Australian when she was ill sometime in January 2013.

After taking the pill, she felt numb and weak and Cole proceeded to rape her.

The abuse was repeated more than 10 times, at least three times a week.

Cole denied all accusations, branding them fabrications and delusions due to drug use.

‘Rape is a crime that is always committed in isolation or in secret, u
sually leaving only the victim to testify about the commission of the crime. As such, the accused may be convicted of rape on the basis of the victim’s sole testimony provided such testimony is logical, credible, consistent and convincing,’ the court said in its ruling.

‘Complainant sufficiently established the fact of rape and identified the accused as the one who had carnal knowledge with her,’ it added.

‘Furthermore, against the straightforward and categorical testimony of the complainant, accused only offered bare denial. Accused was not able to establish any ill motive that could have compelled complainant to falsely accuse him of rape.’

Cole is also facing charges of qualified trafficking in persons involving minors pending before another Family Court.

‘Let’s demand accountability for this, more so, from a foreign national who fearlessly defied the very laws of this country,’ Remulla said. ‘May the victory of this case serve as a deterrent to those who continuously oppress the weak and vulnerable, e
specially women, for their self-interest.’ (PNA)

Source: Philippines News Agency

MANILA : The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has released around PHP49.807 billion to fund the social pension of over four million indigent senior citizens nationwide.

In a statement on Friday, the DBM said the fund, which was given to the Department of Social Welfare and Development in January this year, is chargeable against the 2024 General Appropriations Act.

The released budget is almost double last year’s appropriation of PHP25.30 billion.

DBM Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said the immediate release of budget for the monthly stipend of senior citizens was in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s commitment to take care of the elderly.

‘We recognize the challenges faced by the elderly and understand the importance of providing timely assistance to alleviate their hardships. The prompt release of this budget allows us to make a tangible difference in their lives,’ she said.

The DSWD Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens (SPISC) Program aims to improve the well-being of qualifyi
ng indigent senior citizens by supplementing their daily living and medical requirements, alleviating hunger, and protecting them from deprivation, neglect, or abuse.Under Republic Act (RA) 11916 enacted in July 2022, beneficiaries of the SPISC Program are entitled to receive an enhanced monthly stipend of PHP1,000 this year.

RA 11916 doubles the monthly pension for senior citizens from PHP500 to PHP1,000.

Eligible recipients must be 60 years old and above, frail and sickly, and without pensions from other government sources such as the Government Service Insurance System, Philippine Veterans Affairs Office, Social Security System, and private insurance companies.

They should also not have a regular source of income or support from family or relatives to cover their basic needs.

The SPISC Program is among the many initiatives implemented to achieve the current administration’s vision for a ‘Bagong Pilipinas’ (New Philippines). (PNA)

Source: Philippines News Agency

Negros Oriental Gov. Manuel Sagarbarria on Friday ordered the lifting of the suspension of classes at all levels in both public and private schools across the province, citing a better projection of lower heat indices in the coming days.

The move came just two days after the governor declared the suspension of classes province-wide under Executive Order No. 24 due to extreme heat index at the time which was bordering on the tipping point to be considered ‘danger’ as classified by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

Sagarbarria cited in his latest executive order on the lifting of the suspension the local PAGASA representative during a meeting Friday at the Capitol that ‘the temperature forecast for the province for the coming week and onward will be below the danger category of heat indices’.

As of 4 p.m. Friday, the heat index based on the PAGASA radar here was at 36.1 degrees Celsius.

Earlier this week, Negros Oriental was projected to reach to as
high as 39 degrees Celsius in some parts of the province.

Some institutions also had sought the lifting of the suspension of classes, saying they had air conditioned classrooms as well as other measures to counter the searing temperatures.

Meanwhile, the governor, through Provincial Administrator Arthur Fran Tolcidas, in the same meeting urged the local government units (LGUs) to make an assessment and submit a report of the damage caused by the El Niño.

Adrian Sedillo, executive director of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), told the Philippine News Agency one of the highlights of the meeting was to determine if there was a need to declare a state of calamity in the province.

Sedillo said based on certain parameters, the current situation in Negros Oriental does not warrant the declaration of such.

However, LGUs have the discretion to declare a state of calamity at the local level if the damage and losses incurred due to the El Niño are met, he said.

When more than t
wo LGUs are already under a state of calamity, the provincial government can then follow suit, he added.

As of now, the Department of Agriculture said only 11 LGUs have so far submitted damage reports with some only having complete data.

The DRRMOs in the cities and municipalities and the Provincial Agriculturist’s Office have been tapped to help obtain the necessary data to guide the province in its El Niño mitigating measures and interventions in the coming days, Sedillo said. (PNA)

Source: Philippines News Agency

MANILA : The Busuanga Pasture Reserve in Palawan province has always been government-owned and was never owned by her family, Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga clarified on Friday.

Her family is likewise never a party to the negotiations being undertaken by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) for the utilization or distribution of the property, she said in an official statement.

‘The Yulo family has never owned this land and has no interest in owning it,’ Loyzaga said.

Loyzaga made the clarification to quash allegations on the alleged conflict of interest as DENR chief.

Some sectors claimed her family is the supposed owner of about 40,000 hectares of forests and ancestral domain in Palawan.

‘I hope that this puts to rest all false allegations that came out only after I joined the DENR and started cleaning up the place to make sure only public interest prevails and is served,’ she said.

The Busuanga Pasture Reserve was established by virtue of Proclamation
No.1387 in 1975 by President Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr., located in the municipalities of Coron and Busuanga.

Executive Order 75, signed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte on Feb. 1, 2019, directs the DAR to facilitate the processing of idle and abandoned government-owned lands (GOLs) that can be covered under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program.

In 2022, DAR said it distributed some 800 to 900 hectares of agricultural GOLs out of the total of 2,105 hectares of lot 699-Busuanga Cadastre and a portion of Yulo King Ranch to 786 agrarian reform beneficiaries.

On Thursday, Senator Raffy Tulfo filed a resolution seeking to investigate complaints on alleged violations in protected areas, including the Yulo King Ranch.

Senate Resolution 985 stated that “such allegations could undermine public trust in the DENR and affect its capability to effectively fulfill its mandate of making unbiased decisions regarding issues of similar nature, as well as protecting the environment and natural resources of the country.’

”
It is imperative to investigate these allegations thoroughly to ensure that public officials adhere to the highest ethical standards, thereby safeguarding the public interest and maintaining trust in public institutions,” the resolution read. (PNA)

Source: Philippines News Agency

Cao Bang: The 8th symposium of the Asia Pacific Geoparks Network (APGN), slated for this September, is expected to help promote tourism in the northern mountainous province of Cao Bang.

The biennial symposium, to be held by the Cao Bang People’s Committee and the Vietnam National Commission for UNESCO from September 7 to 15, will attract about 800 – 1,000 international and domestic delegates.

It will include meetings of the UNESCO Global Geopark Council to evaluate and re-evaluate dossiers, a meeting of the APGN Cordination Committee and Advisory Committee, general and thematic seminars, bilateral meetings between regional geoparks, cultural and artistic performances, exhibitions, along with booths for introducing Cao Bang’s tourism to delegates.

Vi Tran Thuy, Deputy Director of the Management Board of the Non Nuoc Cao Bang UNESCO Global Geopark, said the board has proposed the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the provincial People’s Committee establish an advisory board, a scientif
ic council, subcommittees, and supporting groups to prepare for the event organisation. It has also coordinated with relevant departments and units to build a volunteer and collaborator training plan.

The management board has also worked with UNESCO experts to develop a registration portal and a symposium management software in English and Vietnamese for delegates to register their attendance and submit reports.

Located in the north of Vietnam, 300km from Hanoi, Non Nuoc Cao Bang was recognised as a UNESCO global geopark in 2018. It covers 3,000sq.km and is home to nine ethnic groups, including Tay, Nung, Mong, Dao, and San Chay.

The geopark is an exceptional territory which offers insights into the history of the planet across more than 500 million years through protected sites. Fossils, marine sediment, volcanic and plutonic rocks and minerals are witness to the remarkable evolution and changes of the earth, and they constitute an exceptional geological heritage.

It is also a land of tangible and intang
ible cultural heritage sites and special historical monuments. The area is also well-known for its high biological diversity with abundant endemic plant and animal species and ecosystems.

Cao Bang province is also renowned for its many scenic attractions, such as the Phia Oac Ecotourism Area, Phia Den, the Thang Hen Lake cluster, Nguom Ngao Cave, and especially Ban Gioc Waterfall, which was once voted one of the four most majestic and beautiful border waterfalls in the world./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

GEORGE TOWN, The government has expressed its readiness to provide additional assistance for humanitarian missions to the Palestinian people after Israel allowed the delivery of aid through border crossings with the northern part of the Gaza Strip.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the additional assistance for Palestine could be carried out because the government still has the allocation for it.

“(Is there additional assistance) Insya-Allah, we will assist because we still have allocation, there’s a queue of hundreds of lorries (for assistance), so let’s clear that first, (so that) the distribution (of aid) is more organised,’ he told reporters after performing Friday prayers with 2,000 congregants at the Sungai Ara Al-Huda Mosque in Bayan Lepas here today.

The media today reported an announcement from the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, stating that Israel will allow the delivery of ‘temporary aid’ through its border with the northern part of the Gaza Strip.

Elaborating,
Anwar said that the humanitarian aid mission from Malaysia is currently on standby at the Rafah border.

“(The total value of Malaysian aid available) I can’t remember but three or four times already. I asked (Egyptian) President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi twice, and two weeks ago he helped expedite it, and the third time it arrived, but now what’s on standby is still there,’ he said.

Earlier, Anwar and the other congregants listened to the sermon by the Penang Fatwa committee member Associate Professor Dr Mohd Sukki Othman, before performing Friday prayers, led by the mosque’s Imam, Syaraafat Yaacob.

After the Friday prayers, the Prime Minister spent some time to greet and mingle with the congregants.

Anwar is scheduled to attend the Penang development briefing at Komtar here before heading to the MADANI Bubur Lambuk Programme at the Kubang Semang Mosque in Bukit Mertajam, conducting a walkabout at the Seberang Jaya Public Market Ramadan Bazaar and attending the state-level MADANI breaking of fast event at UiTM
Penang during his visit to the state today.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and its industry partners extended aid to tahfiz students of Masjid Al-Hasanah in Bandar Baru Bangi yesterday.

The industry partners included Bank Rakyat, Sabella, Hospital Islam Az-Zahrah and Syarikat Abdul Antiques.

UKM deputy vice-chancellor for Industry and Community Network Affairs (HEJIM), Prof Datuk Dr Norazah Mohd Nordin, said in a statement that the Sentuhan Kasih Ramadan HEJIM-UKM programme was held to support the community with the collaborative efforts of the university’s industry partners.

‘We want to highlight the involvement of our industry partners. So, we invited them to join us in celebrating and making contributions to these tahfiz children for the upcoming Eid.

‘We also provided contributions to the teachers and donated copies of the Quran to the tahfiz children. Although the amount may not be substantial, we hope that these small gestures will bring joy to them during Hari Raya,’ she said.

During the event, UKM and its industry partn
ers distributed duit raya, headscarves and turbans to 58 tahfiz students aged 10 to 19.

According to UKM, it is collaborating with industry partners and the community to organise programmes that benefit its members and the surrounding community throughout Ramadan.

Among them was the provision of iftar meals for 1,000 people at the Ihya Ramadan programme, which included UKM staff, students, and residents who gathered to break the fast at the UKM Mosque.

The programme received contributions of over RM140,000 from individuals, UKM alumni and members, and the general public.

In addition, various spiritual activities were held at UKM throughout Ramadan, such as religious talks and lectures, the celebration of the Nuzul Al-Quran event, and assistance to the homeless around the federal capital.

Meanwhile, several international programmes have also been planned through UKM’s HEJIM portfolio, including the annual ASEAN Youth Volunteer Programme, which has been held since 2013 and brings together youth from 10 ASE
AN countries.

Two more programmes scheduled for May are the AsiaEngage Regional Conference and the International Waqf Conference.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency