Senior citizen patay matapos ma-trap sa nasusunog na bahay sa Davao del Sur

Patay ang isang 60-anyos na lalake matapos siya ma-trap sa nasusunog niyang bahay sa Purok Talisay, Brgy. Tuban sa bayan ng Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur Linggo ng gabi.

Kinilala ang biktima na si Erenio Ayo Camongay. Siya lang ang mag-isang nakatira sa bahay na nasunog.

Alas 9:30 ng gabi nang napansin ng kapatid ng biktima, na kapitbahay rin nito, na nasusunog na pala ang tinitirahan niya. Pero huli na nang nakita dahil kasama na si Erenio sa nilamon ng apoy.

Sa paunang imbestigasyon ng Sta. Cruz BFP, posibleng lasing ang biktima kaya hindi ito agad nagising nang mangyari ang sunog, ayon kay SFO1 Mark Arvin Metilla.

Mabilis na kumalat ang apoy dahil gawa lamang sa kahoy ang bahay.

Ang nakikitang sanhi ng sunog ay ang sinindihang balat ng niyog para pamatay ng lamok dahil wala namang kuryente sa kanilang lugar.--Ulat ni Chrislen Bulosan

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/05/21/senior-citizen-patay-matapos-ma-trap-sa-nasusunog-na-bahay-sa-davao-del-sur

New concession deal with Manila Water ‘advantageous’ to consumers

 By Azer Parrocha

The revised agreement with water concessionaire Manila Water Company, Inc. is “advantageous” to the government and consumers, Malacañang said Monday.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque made this remark after Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra announced on March 31 that the government’s revised agreement with Manila Water has been signed.

“Isang revised concession agreement ang nabuo na nagbibigay ng mas magandang serbisyo ng tubig sa Metro Manila at advantageous sa pamahalaan at consumers (The Revised Concession Agreement will provide better water service to Metro Manila and is very advantageous to the national government and consumer),” he said in a Palace press briefing.

Roque pointed out that the new concession deal is proof that Duterte has the Filipino people’s best interests at heart.

“Patunay ito ang interes ng mga Pilipino ang nasa isip at puso ng ating Presidente (This is proof that the President keeps in mind and heart the interest of the Filipino people),” he added.

Roque noted that the agreement is modeled after the New Clark City joint venture agreement of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) as advised by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Among the salient points of the new concession deal that benefits the government is the removal of government non-interference clauses which means that the government will no longer be liable when fulfilling its regulatory functions to protect the consumer.

The new concession deal also recognizes that Manila Water as a public utility, which makes it more accountable to the government and the public.

It also removes the addition of provisions that unduly compromise medium- and long-term government liabilities (contingent liabilities), such as the following:

-- Removal of the national government’s performance undertaking for future debt and requires that all debt;

-- All debt and expenditures of the concessionaire must be reviewed and approved by the regulatory office;

-- All fully recovered assets are immediately transferred to the government to ensure there is no double payment at the end of the contract; and

-- Material Government Adverse Action (MAGA) is limited only to actions of the Executive so that the National Government is not liable for things outside of its control.

As for the consumer, the new concession agreement states that corporate income tax cannot be charged to the consumer, unlike the previous concession agreement.

It also indicates that there is a tariff freeze until Dec. 31, 2022.

The tariff adjustment for inflation will only be two-thirds of the consumer price index, unlike the previous contract which had a 100 percent inflationary impact.

The new concession deal also removes the Foreign Currency Differential Adjustment (FCDA) which will result in much lower tariff increases and protect the consumer from possible tariff spikes because of foreign exchange movements.

Meanwhile, Roque assured that a new concession deal with Maynilad Water Services, Inc. would be taken up next.

Efforts to revise the concession deals came after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to revoke the contracts with the two water concessionaires and fire MWSS officials when water service interruptions hit Metro Manila and nearby areas in 2019.

Duterte subsequently ordered the Department of Justice to review and remove onerous provisions in the deals and discuss proposed revisions to the existing contracts.

In the same virtual presser, Guevarra said negotiations on the other concession agreement with Maynilad will start immediately.

“We will be proposing essentially the same terms and conditions as those that were contained in the revised agreement with Manila Water,” he said. “But of course, we recognize the fact na (that) differently situated ang Maynilad compared to Manila Water so there will be probably a lot of discussions also with respect to possible modification of the terms and conditions.”

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1135803

NCR + bubble downgrade to MECQ mulled if indicators improve

Malacañang said this may be the NCR Plus bubble’s last week under the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) if the prevention, detection, isolation, treatment, and reintegration efforts against the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic will improve in the next six days.

Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque made the statement as Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal enter their second week under ECQ on Monday, April 5.

In his press briefing on Monday, Roque said the ECQ imposed on the NCR + bubble may be relaxed to the modified ECQ (MECQ) “upon proof of better performance across all indicators especially in terms of early detection and isolation.”

For this purpose, the departments of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Trade and Industry (DTI), and Labor and Employment (DOLE), and the National Task Force (NTF) Task Group for the Management of Returning Overseas Filipinos shall ensure that necessary and correct data are submitted from the local government units, workplaces and establishments, and returning overseas Filipino and overseas Filipino workers, respectively.

Based on Resolution No. 108-A of the Inter-agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, the Department of Education (DepEd), Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will ensure that there is an adequate number of the following:

· COVID-19 dedicated beds

· Complementary health human resources

· Well-coordinated triage and referral systems in place at local government units (LGUs), isolation and quarantine facilities, and health facilities

The DILG, DOLE, and the Department of National Defense (DND) are tasked to improve the efficiency of contact tracing by increasing its capacity through the utilization of personnel from the DND and/or DILG, and the DOLE to supplement contact tracing efforts.

The said agencies shall likewise intensify enforcement of current protocols and guidelines at the local level, through the review of existing local ordinances and executive orders to provide for the imposition of other forms of penalties such as community service.

Meanwhile, the DTI adopted the following joint recommendations of the DOLE and the DTI:

· Intensifying the enforcement and monitoring of compliance to the minimum public health standards in the workplaces

· Rolling out of the Safety Seal Certification Program

· Encouraging citizenry reporting of non-compliant establishments through available government channels

https://mb.com.ph/2021/04/05/ncr-bubble-downgrade-to-mecq-mulled-if-indicators-improve/

Mga kabataan, magulang nahuling nag-‘Easter swimming’ sa Bacoor Bay

Naaktuhang nagsisipaglangoy at naglalaro sa dagat sa lungsod ng Bacoor, Cavite, ang mahigit 50 kabataan at maging kanilang mga magulang nitong Easter weekend.

Dinampot at ipinauwi ang 44 na menor de edad at 10 nasa tamang edad na nahuli sa iba-ibang bahagi ng Bacoor Bay mula nitong Biyernes Santo hanggang Linggo.

Isinagawa ang maghapong mga operasyon ng mga tauhan ng Bacoor City Agriculture Office-Deputy Fish Warden (DFW) at ng Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Bacoor. 

Ayon kay Joshua Villaluz, agricultural technologist-fishery law enforcement ng Agriculture Office, balak sana ng grupo na mag-abiso lang sa mga residenteng iwasang maligo sa baybayin dahil sa lockdown.

Ipinagbabawal lumabas sa ilalim ng enhanced community quarantine ang mga kabataang edad 14 pababa.

Bawal ding lumabas ang mga nasa edad 15-65 kung hindi authorized worker o kukuha ng essential goods.

Pero sabi ni Villaluz, napansin nila ang pagdagsa ng mga tao lalo na ang kabataan sa paliguan, marami pa ang walang dalang face masks.

Kaya isinama na sila pabalik sa 3 barangay na nakasasakop sa lugar—ang Zapote 5, Zapote 1, at Digman.

Ipinaubaya ng mga enforcer sa mga barangay kung paano didisiplinahin ang mga nahuling kabataan.

Patuloy naman ang pagpapatrol sa dagat ng DFW at PCG para magpaalala ng pagsunod sa health protocols at sumita ng mga lalabag sa lockdown.

Ngayong ECQ, tanging mga mangingisda ang pinapayagan ng grupo na bumiyahe sa dagat. 

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/05/21/mga-kabataan-magulang-nahuling-nag-easter-swimming-sa-bacoor-bay

NCR Plus under ECQ for one more week

THE enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) status in the National Capital Region Plus (NCR Plus) bubble will be in force for another week beginning April 5, Malacañang announced on Saturday.

Retaining the ECQ classification in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal was based on the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID), Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said.

“Nag-rekomenda po ang IATF na pahabain pa ang enhanced community quarantine ng minimum ng isang linggo sa buong Metro Manila at mga probinsya ng Laguna, Bulacan, Cavite at Rizal,” he said.

Local government units (LGUs) in NCR Plus, he added, are directed to intensify the prevent-detect-isolate-treat-reintegrate (PDITR) measures.

“Nire-require po natin ngayon na magkaroon ng daily monitoring ang mga lokal na pamahalaan, ang ating NTF (National Task Force) czars para po malaman natin kung ano ang resulta ng pina-igting natin na PDITR,” Roque said.

He said LGUS must likewise ensure the strict enforcement of quarantine and health protocols and go after quarantine violators.

The quarantine status may be relaxed to modified ECQ the week after if PDITR measures can slow down COVID-19 infections.

According to the report released by OCTA Research on Friday, the average new daily cases of coronavirus disease in 2019 (COVID-19) dropped in NCR Plus following the implementation of ECQ.

OCTA Research found that the COVID-19 infection growth rate in NCR Plus declined to “40 percent or less,” indicating that government interventions, specifically the imposition of ECQ, “were effective in slowing the growth of the pandemic.”

Meanwhile, modified ECQ is imposed in Quirino province and Santiago City, Isabela until April 15 and 30, respectively.

The less restrictive general community quarantine is implemented in Cordillera Administrative Region, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Batangas, Tacloban City, Iligan City, Davao City, and Lanao del Sur for the whole month of April.

The rest of the country is under modified GCQ, the most relaxed quarantine status.

New cases, recoveries

The Department of Health (DOH) on Saturday reported recoveries have reached 604,905 or 77.2 percent of the total confirmed cases after 599 new survivors.

It also tallied 12, 576 additional cases, bringing the total case count to 784,043, and 103 new fatalities that raised the death toll to 13,423 or 1.71 percent of the total cases.

On Friday, the DOH explained that the new infection tally reached 15,310 because it failed to add the 3,709 cases that should have been reported on Wednesday.

“On March 31, 2021, the DOH reported only 6,128 new cases due to CovidKaya system issue. After system checks, validation and deduplication were made, 3,709 additional cases were confirmed. These cases were added to today’s cases, thus totaling to 15,310,” it said. Philippine News Agency

https://journal.com.ph/news/metro/ncr-plus-under-ecq-for-one-more-week/