6.

ODDITY

Proposed ban on private cars on Edsa a ‘crazy idea’

MANILA, Philippines — Two Senate leaders on Tuesday burst Caloocan City

Rep. Edgar Erice’s bubble, with one describing as “a crazy idea” his proposal to

ban private cars on Edsa during peak hours.

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto pointed out that owners of

private vehicles were paying various taxes amounting to hundreds of billions to

use public roads.

“It’s a crazy idea. But people are free to suggest. I don’t take those seriously,”

Recto said in a text message to reporters

Senate President Vicente Sotto III also doused cold water on the proposal,

which Erice floated during Monday’s House hearing on the Metropolitan Manila

Development Authority’s budget for 2020.

“It’s not a (well-thought-out) idea,” Sotto said bluntly.

“He says (the number of) buses will increase during that time. Then where

do you dump the thousand of buses that ply (Edsa) after 9 a.m.?” he said.

Erice suggested that Edsa be converted into a “mass transport highway”

open only to buses and other public utility vehicles (PUVs) at peak hours.

Some 300,000 private cars use the major thoroughfare every day, compared

with only about 8,000 buses, he said.

 Commuter groups said Erice’s proposal could work depending on certain

conditions.

Toix Cerna of Komyut expressed support for it, but stressed that it must be

anchored on similar efforts from the Land Transportation Franchising and

Regulatory Board to increase and regulate PUVs on the road.

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1165718/proposed-ban-on-private-

cars-on-edsa-a-crazy-idea

Stop using 'Xerox' when you mean 'copy', Japanese firm tells public in

Philippines

MANILA - The Japanese company that makes the world's most popular

photocopying machines is asking the public in the Philippines to stop using the

word "Xerox" when referring to anything other than the machines it makes or

services it provides.

Fuji Xerox Co. Ltd. published a notice on a Philippine broadsheet on

Thursday to remind people that its Xerox brand is "not just another word for copy."

The company said Xerox is a globally recognized registered trademark

protected by law.

While a lot of people use the brand name as a synonym for copying, Fuji

Xerox said this is wrong.

 As a registered trademark, Xerox is not a verb or a common noun and should

therefore not be used to describe copying or copy services in general, Fuji Xerox

said.

"So please don't use the word 'XEROX' as another word for 'copy'," the

company appealed.

This was not the first or only time that a brand name became part of everyday

language, thanks to the product's runaway marketing success.

Source: https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/09/19/19/stop-using-xerox-

when-you-mean-copy-japanese-firm-tells-public-in-philippines

Boy “lays” two eggs in front of baffled doctors

A teenage boy in Indonesia has left doctors baffled after he laid not just one,

but two eggs in front of them.

As per International Business Times, the bizarre case of 14-year-old Akmal

from Gowa, Indonesia has baffled doctors after he claimed to have laid a total of

20 eggs since 2016.

Akmal has been x-rayed and doctors found an egg sitting in his bum.

Medical experts said it is impossible for an egg to develop inside the human

body and suspects the boy shoved them inside him.

Syekh Yusuf Hospital is putting the boy into quarantine for a week, during

which time it would be unlikely for the teenager to shove eggs up his rectum.
 “Our suspicion is that the eggs were deliberately shoved into Akmal’s

rectum,” Muhammad Taslim, a spokesman for the hospital, said.

“Scientifically chicken eggs cannot form inside the human body. It’s

impossible, especially in the digestive system,” he added.

Source: https://kickerdaily.com/posts/2018/02/boy-lays-two-eggs-in-front-of-

baffled-doctors/

7.PROGRESS

Philippine Army rebrands primary armored unit

MANILA, Philippines — In anticipation of its upcoming assets and the

prospect of more aggressive land defense, the Philippine Army has rebranded its

primary armored unit.

The Mechanized Infantry Division has been renamed to Armor Division

effective September 11, said Army spokesperson Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala.

“This will usher in the expansion of our armored corps as we expand it by

purchasing 44 tanks to be delivered next year,” he told INQUIRER.net.

The change does not entail additional personnel and equipment based on

the approved table of organization and equipment, he said.

The Armor Division celebrated its anniversary at Camp O’Donell in Tarlac on

Wednesday, where it showcased its new capabilities and technologies including

the armor personnel carrier with remote control weapon station from Israel and

Infantry fighting vehicle and mortar system.

It also launched its new moniker Pambato, which stands for “Piniling Yunit ng

Hukbong Katihan na Panlaban sa Larangan ng Pakikidigma.” It also means fighter

or made for battle or endurance.

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1166292/philippine-army-rebrands-

primary-armored-unit

DILG says road clearing ops going smoothly

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of the Interior and Local

Government (DILG) will start fielding assessment teams on Sept. 30 to validate

the compliance of mayors in Metro Manila and other regions with President

Rodrigo Duterte’s order to clear all public roads of obstructions.

DILG spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said on Wednesday that all road

clearing operations in the different localities were “proceeding smoothly.”

We’re not yet in a position to make an assessment (as to compliance) at this

time because the validation begins on the 30th of this month,” he told the Inquirer.

The DILG issued in July a memorandum circular setting a 60-day deadline

for all local government units, particularly in the National Capital Region, to clear

public roads of illegal structures and other obstructions to ease vehicular traffic.

The deadline will end on Sept. 29.

 Malaya pointed out that before a local government could be declared fully

compliant, they should “enact or revisit ordinances related to road clearing and

banning of illegal construction; prepare an inventory of roads within their

jurisdiction; develop and implement displacement strategies; and cause the

rehabilitation of recovered public roads.”

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1166361/dilg-says-road-clearing-ops-going-

smoothly

PH EMPLOYMENT NUMBERS CONTINUE TO IMPROVE IN JULY 2019

MANILA – The country’s labor force continued to improve, recording

increased employment and lower underemployment in July 2019, the National

Economic and Development Authority said.

The July round of the Labor Force Survey (LFS) of the Philippine Statistics

Authority showed that employment growth rate increased by 5.7 percent in July

2019, from 1.2 percent in July 2018.

This translates to 2.3 million additional employment, almost five times the

479,000 employment generated in the same period last year.

The total number of employed Filipinos reached nearly 43.0 million in July

2019 on account of stronger employment in the services (6.1% from 4.7% in 2018)

and agriculture sectors (7.6% from -7.4% in 2018).

 “While the Philippine economy has shown remarkable improvements in the

labor market, the government should continually improve its efforts towards

generating more productive and higher quality employment that provides adequate

income for Filipino workers and their families,” NEDA Undersecretary for Policy

and Planning and current Officer-in-Charge (OIC) Rosemarie G. Edillon said.

She added that the full implementation of the Ease of Doing Business and

Efficient Government Service Delivery Act, and reduction of foreign investment

restrictions in public utilities, retail trade and domestic-market oriented firms, are

seen to create more employment opportunities for Filipinos.

Meanwhile, underemployment rate – the proportion of those already

employed but still wanting more work – fell to its lowest rate in all July rounds of

the survey at 13.9 percent, from year-ago’s 17.2 percent. This translates to a

reduction of over a million underemployed workers in July 2019.

On the other hand, unemployment rate was steady at 5.4 percent, which

remained to be the lowest unemployment rate recorded for all July rounds of the

survey since 2009.

The year-to-date unemployment rate is estimated at 5.2 percent, near the

upper end of the 4.3 to 5.3 percent target in the Philippine Development Plan 2017-

2022.

Also, the labor force participation rate (LFPR) expanded further to 62.1

percent as more Filipinos are encouraged to join the labor force. In particular, youth
LFPR went up TO 38.3 percent, which is 1.5 percentage points higher than the

previous survey period.

“The government must continue encouraging the private sector to increase

employment opportunities for young people, supporting technical vocational

training, promoting apprenticeship and on-the-job training programs among the

youth,” said Edillon.

Moreover, an improvement in female LPFR was noted, given the decline in

the number of females who are economically inactive or not in the labor force. A

sharp decline of 3.4 percent (361,000) was observed in the number of women who

cited assumption of household and family duties as reason for not being in the

labor force.

Nevertheless, the government needs to speed up on its programs and

policies in order to meet the government’s annual target of increasing female LFPR

to 50.1 percent.

“To achieve target in increasing female LFPR, monitoring and strict

implementation of programs and policies geared towards fostering women’s

economic participation need to be intensified such as the Expanded Maternity

Leave Act and Telecommuting Act, which recognizes alternative work-from-home

arrangements in the private sector,” she said.

Source: http://www.neda.gov.ph/ph-employment-numbers-continue-to-

improve-in-july-2019/
 8. TIMELINESS

VP: Rejected foreign aid could have boosted gov’t programs

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo was saddened by the

order to suspend the financial aid from countries who supported the United

Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) resolution calling for a probe into the

Philippine drug war.

Robredo said on Sunday that the money that the Duterte administration

refused could have been used as additional budget for some programs of the

government for the poor.

“It would have been OK if we had our own money to replace it, but if we

don’t have any, the beneficiaries of these programs would be the ones who

would sacrifice,” Robredo, speaking in Filipino, said in her weekly radio show

“BISErbisyong Leni.”

“It’s sad because this could have been additional funding for programs for

the poor,” she added.

Robredo was reacting to an earlier report of The Inquirer that a confidential

memorandum from the Office of the President ordered a suspension of all

negotiations or signing of all loan and grant agreements with the countries that

voted in favor of the UNHRC resolution.

A total of 18 countries voted in favor of the resolution — namely, Argentina,

Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Fiji,

Iceland, Italy, Mexico, Peru, Slovakia, Spain, Ukraine, the United Kingdom of

Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Uruguay.

Signed by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea on behalf of President

Rodrigo Duterte, the memo suspended all new talks and deals for foreign loans

and grants from the 18 countries.

The memo, it said, was issued “in light of the administration’s strong

rejection of the resolution of the UN Human Rights Council.”

However, presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo denied the order

suspending all financial assistance from the 18 countries.

“The President has not issued any memorandum suspending loans and

negotiations involving 18 countries that voted in favor of the Iceland resolution,”

Panelo said.

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1167922/vp-rejected-foreign-aid-could-

have-boosted-govt-programs

Polio blame game: PAO chief lashes back at ‘trolls’

MANILA, Philippines — Chief Public Attorney Persida Acosta is bristling at

repeatedly being blamed for the reemergence of infectious diseases in the

country and her voice can almost be heard in social media.

“Trolls are out using [the Department of Health’s] alleged outbreaks!”

Acosta posted on Twitter on Saturday, two days after the DOH announced the
reemergence of polio in the country after almost two decades. Creators of social

media memes immediately went to work, one of them “congratulating” her for

“reviving” the debilitating disease.

Acosta said she and her coworkers at the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO)

were inoculated with proven vaccines at childhood and her “only issue” was with

the dengue vaccine Dengvaxia.

Drug companies and some doctors, including DOH officials, have been

blaming Acosta for the declining public confidence in the government’s

immunization program following the death of 145 people, mostly children, who

were inoculated with Dengvaxia.

After the PAO filed criminal cases against health officials and drug

companies in early 2018, she has also been blamed for the surge in measles

cases in six out of the country’s 17 regions earlier this year.

When the DOH announced last week that it had found two cases of

poliomyelitis, she was again blamed for the return of a disease that was declared

eradicated in the country 19 years ago.

But Acosta said the DOH should take responsibility for the two outbreaks

because of the vaccines it used and the poor information drive for its

immunization program.

She said the two children — one 3-year-old and one 5-year-old — who

were found stricken with polio should have been inoculated when they were 2-6

months old, at least three years ago.

 “Simple logic! [It’s just the] trolls’ blame game,” Acosta tweeted.

On Friday, World Health Organization (WHO) Philippines representative

Rabindra Abeyasinghe clarified that the vaccines previously used by the DOH

were not meant for the Type 2 polio virus strain that was found in the two new

cases.

Consequently, the DOH will rollout a vaccine specifically targeting the Type

2 strain, in addition to a supplemental polio immunization program.

Health Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje said they were awaiting the delivery

in the first week of October of the monovalent vaccine that would come from the

WHO headquarters in Geneva, where it has been stockpiled in the event of an

outbreak.

Priority areas

Cabotaje said Lanao del Sur, Cavite and Davao will be prioritized in the

distribution of the vaccine as these were the areas where the Type 2 strain was

recorded.

In the case of Manila, the Type 1 VDPV strain was detected in two tests

conducted on the city’s sewage.

The current bivalent oral polio vaccine (OPV) used by the DOH targets the

Type 1 and Type 3 polio strains.

 Cabotaje said that even if a child below 5 years old had already completed

his polio vaccination, he or she would still be given the vaccine “for added

protection.”

“That is what the other countries are doing until there are no more recorded

cases,” she said. “What’s important [with the distribution of the] monovalent

vaccine is to cover everyone. We don’t want anyone to be left behind in an area,

so that the virus would not be able to mutate.”

Global use

Since April 2016, governments around the world have switched from the

trivalent to bivalent OPV because, according to the Global Polio Eradication

Initiative (GPEI), continuously using the trivalent OPV increases the risk of

circulating the Type 2 strain.

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1167828/polio-blame-game-pao-chief-

lashes-back-at-trolls

Weaker monsoon expected to affect Northern, Central Luzon

07:23 PM September 22, 2019

Source: Pagasa website | September 22, 6:00 PM

MANILA, Philippines — The southwest monsoon is expected to weaken but

will continue to affect the Northern and Central Luzon regions, the Philippine

Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa)

said Sunday.
 The southwest monsoon will bring cloudy skies with isolated thunderstorms

in the provinces of Pangasinan, Bataan, and Zambales.

No other weather disturbance is being monitored around the Philippine area

of responsibility (PAR).

Fair weather is expected across the country on Monday, with isolated

thunderstorms in the afternoon or evening.

In Metro Manila, good weather is expected to continue in the next three

days, but isolated thunderstorms are still possible in the afternoon and evening.

/atm

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1167935/weaker-monsoon-expected-

to-affect-northern-central-luzon

9.DRAMA

Man drowns after underwater marriage proposal to girlfriend

A couple’s “best day of their lives” took a turn for the worst when the man

passed away following a marriage proposal to his girlfriend underwater.

Steven Weber Jr. asked Kenesha Antoine the big question while they were

vacationing in Tanzania in Eastern Africa, as per The Advocate last Friday, Sept.

20.

The couple, both from Louisiana, United States, stayed in a bungalow with a

bedroom submerged in the sea, and had windows that showed the waters

surrounding them, as per Antoine’s post on Facebook on the same day.

 Weber proposed to Antoine by diving underwater, wearing a snorkeling

mask and fins, and swimming to one of the bedroom’s windows, as seen in a

video Antoine shared.

As he got to the window, he opened a note that read: “I can’t hold my breath

long enough to tell you everything I love about you BUT… everything I love about

you I love more EVERY DAY!”

He then flipped the piece of paper over to show another message that said,

“Will you please be my wife. Marry me???” Finally, he took out a small box and

showed a ring to his partner.

After popping the big question, Weber began to swim back up to the surface

but Antoine revealed that he had never made it back to her.

“You never emerged from those depths,” Antoine said. “So you never got to

hear my answer, ‘Yes! Yes! A million times, yes, I will marry you!!’”

“We never got to embrace and celebrate the beginning of the rest of our

lives together,” she added. “As the best day of our lives turned into the worst, in

the cruelest twist of fate imaginable.”

Antoine’s post was accompanied by other moments from their trip such as a

photo of them with a giraffe in the background, and a video of the bungalow they

stayed in.

Despite the tragedy, Antoine remembers Weber as a man of love and

laughter, saying, “knowing him, always quick with an off-color joke, he’s probably
entertaining someone with a story about how he royally screwed up that proposal

and died while being extra.” Ryan Arcadio/JB

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1167877/p2fb-man-drowns-after-

underwater-marriage-proposal-to-girlfriend

Samar teen’s family turns tragedy into gift of sight

TACLOBAN CITY, Leyte, Philippines — He was supposed to meet his friends

when he crashed his motorcycle to avoid hitting a dog that suddenly crossed the

street in Borongan City, Eastern Samar.

Kobe Andrei Tejero was brought to a hospital in this provincial capital where

he died five days later on Aug. 20 due to severe head injuries. He was only 17.

The death of the Grade 12 senior high school student of Eastern Samar

National Comprehensive High School came as a shock to his friends and loved

ones.

But his parents, Mariso and Wilfred, decided to donate his organs so that

their eldest son may live through others.

“When we decided to donate his eyes and his other organs, I whispered to

him that he would be doing some good [for other people],” said Mariso, 47, a

computer teacher at Eastern Samar State University in Borongan.

With his parents’ consent, Tejero became the first eye donor from Region 8

(Eastern Visayas), according to Eye Bank Foundation of the Philippines (EBFP).

The region is composed of the provinces of Leyte, Southern Leyte, Biliran, Samar,

Eastern Samar and Northern Samar.

The family wanted to donate Tejero’s heart and kidneys but his kidneys

malfunctioned when the teenager suffered cardiac arrest while confined at Eastern

Visayas Regional Medical Center (EVRMC).

Eventually, only his corneas were harvested for donation, according to

Mariso.

On Aug. 15, Tejero was on a motorcycle heading to Maydolong town from

Borongan when the bike crashed as he tried to avoid a dog crossing the street.

He was brought to EVRMC for severe head injuries and died five days later.

While watching over the teenager in the hospital, a member of the hospital’s

staff approached the Tejero family and asked if they were willing to donate his

organs in the event he did not survive.

Mariso, husband Wilfred, their other son, 13-year-old Brian Emmanuel, and

other family members discussed the matter.

“We prayed about it. And we came to a decision to donate his organs. We

consoled ourselves [with the thought] that if we were to donate Kobe’s organs,

somebody out there would benefit and we could help extend his or her life. My

husband, and later, our relatives agreed with me,” Mariso said.

“He was a very loving and helpful son. I knew he was also happy that we

donated his [corneas] to help others who were in need,” she added.
 The mother recalled that while she was pregnant with Tejero, she was lucky

to find a blood donor when she was looking for one.

Just hours after the teenager’s death, a team of doctors from Chong Hua

Hospital in Cebu City went to EVRMC to harvest his corneas. The procedure took

less than an hour.

Search for donors

Mariso said the doctors showed them Tejero’s corneas inside a specialized

small jar. “We were just happy to see Kobe’s corneas. There [was] no fear or

sadness. We kept on saying ‘Hi Kobe,’” she said.

The corneas were brought to the EBFP office in Ermita, Manila.

Yna Orfinada, EBFP senior procurement transplant coordinator, said the

foundation was happy with the Tejero family’s decision as this made the teenager

the first eye donor from Region 8.

“We hope that this will encourage others to become organ donors,” she said

in a phone interview.

Orfinada said about 450 persons had been waiting for donations of corneas

but only 30 had been listed as donors. “We have already identified a beneficiary of

Kobe’s corneas,” she said.

Told that Mariso would like to see the recipient of her son’s corneas, Orfinada

explained that confidentiality may be waived if the beneficiary would also wish to

meet the donor’s family.

 Mariso said the experience had moved her to become an advocate of organ

donation so others in need could benefit from the procedure. The outpouring of

support even from strangers convinced her that she made the right decision.

Among those who supported the family decision was Tejero’s girlfriend, Luzel

Antonette Hernane.

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1167820/samar-teens-family-turns-tragedy-

into-gift-of-sight

Filipino couple on honeymoon drowns in Maldives

MANILA, Philippines — A Filipino couple on their honeymoon drowned to

death in the Maldives, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Monday.

The 29-year-old wife and the 30-year-old husband were reportedly snorkeling

when they started drowning, according to authorities. The couple were staying at

a resort in Dhiffushi island.

"Both were rescued by resort workers but were pronounced dead upon arrival

at a local hospital. Authorities were reported to be investigating the incident," DFA

spokesperson Elmer Cato said in a statement.

According to a report from Raajjee Television, the man started drowning first

while his wife started to call for help upon seeing him drowning.

The Filipino couple were both motionless when rescuers reached them on a

dinghy afloat the surface of the water.

 The couple were married on Dec. 18, 2018 and left Manila for their

honeymoon last January 9, the DFA said.

The DFA has expressed its sympathies to the families of the couple and is

keeping in touch with their next of kin to extend assistance in the repatriation of

their remains. — Patricia Lourdes Viray

10.EMOTIONS