Philippine Daily Inquirer articles from April 2009

Philippine Daily Inquirer archives from April 2009

500 Luisita farm families told to leave.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon CITY OF SAN FERNANDOHACIENDA LUISITA Inc. (HLI) is giving farm workers until Oct. 30 to stop planting and occupying portions of the 6,453-hectare Tarlac sugar estate rendered idle by a 2004...

Bank deposit insurance raised to P500,000.
April 30, 2009... Byline: TJ Burgonio A MEASURE DOUBLING THE INSURance coverage of deposits to P500,000 to shield them from any bank closures amid the global economic downturn was signed into law yesterday. President Macapagal-Arroyo signed Republic...

Pray that Ricky doesnt play it slow and sticky.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Recah Trinidad TRAINER FREDDIE ROACH DID A magnificent job pulling out a pitifully outclassed Gerry Penalosa from his fiery world championship challenge in Puerto Rico on Sunday. There were two distinct reasons why Roach...

Bata, Valle hurdle 1st-round foes.
April 30, 2009... SANTIAGO CITYEFREN BATA Reyes and 2008 Cebu leg winner Gandy Valle won handily against their respective foes at the start of the second Manny Villar Cup Isabela leg yesterday at the La Salette High School gym. Reyes outplayed Jharome...

12 more battalions needed vs rebelsTeodoro.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Nestor P. Burgos, Jr., Inquirer Visayas SAN JOSE, ANTIQUETWELVE more battalions are needed to saturate areas where conflicts between government troops and rebel or armed groups continue, according to Defense Secretary Gilbert...

Saving the world from a pandemic potential.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Belinda Olivares-Cunanan THE SWINE FLU EPIDEMIC IN VARIOUS PARTS of the world, with Mexico City as its epicenter, is bound to aggravate the global economic crisis at a time when there are faint signs that the world economy is...

Biazon questions destab, kill-GMA plot stories.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Christine O. Avendano and Tarra Quismundo SEN. RODOLFO BIAZON IS SCRATCHing his head, trying to figure out the latest coup stories from President Macapagal-Arroyos men. This is a serious matter and we need an explanation from...

50,000 purged from Camarines Sur voters list.
April 30, 2009... PILI, CAMARINES SURTHE NAMES OF some 50,000 people have been purged from the voters list in Camarines Sur since last month, according to the Commission on Elections provincial office. Noriel Badiola, provincial election supervisor, said...

Yes you can.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Ma. Ceres P. Doyo TIS SUMMERTIME AND MANY PEOPLE ARE taking a break, going off to distant or secret places in order to heal, to be healthy, to help themselves and others, to try to become whole again. You, too, and take a book...

Chandler shines in Purefoods win.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Musong R. Castillo COCA-COLA COACH KENNETH DUR-emdes sat on the bench wearing sunglasses because of sore eyes. He might have been better off covering them completely to avoid the sight of the Tigers collapsing in the stretch...

Cory, Erap, senators, traders air support.
April 30, 2009... TWO FORMER PRESIDENTS, A group of Makati businessmen, several senators and a movement for good governance threw their support behind whistle-blower Rodolfo Jun Lozada Jr. who was arrested yesterday on perjury charges. I appeal to all...

Defensor: No turning back in perjury case vs Lozada.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Nancy Carvajal FLANKED BY HIS WIFE AND children, former Presidential Chief of Staff Mike Defensor said yesterday that he would pursue the perjury case he filed against NBN-ZTE whistle-blower Rodolfo Jun Lozada. Defensor said...

DFA staff appeal to GMA: Respect career officers.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Nikko Dizon and TJ Burgonio IN AN UNPRECEDENTED move, a demoralized foreign service corps yesterday urged President Macapagal-Arroyo to reconsider the appointments of the two highest ranking military officials to diplomatic posts...

Did you know.
April 30, 2009... THE 2006 Family Planning Survey showed Metro Manila had the third lowest contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) among married women (46.2%). The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao had the lowest (20%), followed by Bicol (44%). Central Luzon...

Intl drug syndicate recruiting Pinoys as couriers, says Sotto.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Nancy C. Carvajal A GROUP OF FOREIGNERS WAS allegedly recruiting poor Filipinos to act as drug mules or international drug couriers, according to Dangerous Drugs Board Chair Vicente Sotto III. In a press conference in Quezon...

Duque inspects Naia measures vs swine flu.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Jerome Aning HEALTH SECRETARY FRANCISCO Duque III yesterday inspected measures being implemented at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) in Pasay City to prevent the possible entry and spread of the dreaded swine flu...

Brunei beauty.
April 30, 2009... FOR A GOVERNMENT THAT INSISTS, MANICALLY, even maniacally, on the presumption of regularity, the Arroyo administration is certainly addicted to the irregular practice of politics. Consider the curious case of the countrys newest Brunei...

Tax eyed on plastic bag use.
April 30, 2009... THE USE OF PLAStic bags, which are harmful to the environment, should be taxed to discourage their proliferation, a lawmaker has proposed. Albay Rep. Al Francis Bichara said his bill would convince shoppers to use bags made of...

Failon gives statement to NBI.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Allison W. Lopez and Rachel Miranda ABS-CBN NEWS ANCHOR TED Failon yesterday gave a more comprehensive statement on his wife Trinidads death at the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) headquarters in Manila. Failons lawyer...

Free Lozada movement on.
April 30, 2009... Byline: DJ Yap and Allison W. Lopez THE ARRESTING OFFICERS of whistle-blower Rodolfo Jun Lozada used a password yesterday to gain entry to the De La Salle Greenhills campus in Mandaluyong City, where Lozada and his family had been staying...

Get 88 votes or shut up, party-list solons told.
April 30, 2009... SHOW ME 88 SIGNATURES OR SHUT UP. Justice committee chair and Quezon City Rep. Matias Defensor yesterday challenged the party-list congressmen to get the one-third votes of the House of Representatives needed to impeach Ombudsman...

With GMO ban, animal industry collapse feared.
April 30, 2009... BACOLOD CITYTHE provincial ban on genetically modified (GMO) products could lead to the collapse of the local livestock, poultry and game fowl industries, the provincial veterinarian warned on Wednesday. Almost 90 percent of the...

Incentives offered for green developers in QC.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Julie M. Aurelio THE QUEZON CITY GOVERNment is offering incentives to property developers who will use environment-friendly materials in the rehabilitation or construction of buildings. The 2009 Green Building Ordinance...

Its insane: Pacquiao fame likened to Alis.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Roy Luarca LAS VEGASIVE SEEN THIS BEFORE with Ali years and years ago. This is the same type of reaction. Ali was Ali, but Mannys getting there. This was how Bob Arum described the frenzy that greeted Manny Pacquiaos grand...

Scapegoats.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Juan L. Mercado A GOOD SCAPEGOAT IS NEARLY AS WELcome as a solution to a problem. That axiom tailor-fits the excuse that National Economic and Development Authoritys Ralph Recto peddled. As a result of the global financial...

33 Koreans granted investors visas.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Jerome Aning THIRTY-THREE SOUTH KOREANS based in Baguio City comprised the latest recipients of the indefinite job generation visa offered by the Bureau of Immigration to foreign businessmen employing at least 10 Filipino...

V-League: SSC duels Ateneo.
April 30, 2009... SAN SEBASTIAN HOPES TO BRING ITS A-game against Ateneo-Oracare today in the featured match of a triple-header as the 5th Shakeys V-League first conference resumes at the FilOil Flying V Arena (formerly The Arena) in San Juan. Despite...

Long, desperate wait for laid-off workers.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Maricar Cinco, Cabuyao, Laguna AT LEAST 144 LAID-OFF WORKERS IN LAGU-na are calling for the immediate issuance of writs of execution on illegal dismissal cases that have been long overdue at the National Labor Relations Commission...

Loren-Chiz polls strong.
April 30, 2009... NO EXCUSE TO BRING OUT THE champagne just yet, but she could be all set to party. Based on the results of an unreleased survey conducted by Pulse Asia last year, Sen. Loren Legarda has reason to be optimistic. The survey, conducted...

Manny cant fight, says Hatton trainer.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Roy Luarca LAS VEGASFLOYD MAYWEATHER SR. likens Ricky Hatton to an animal, specifically a tiger, in the ring. Ferocious and vicious as a fighter, Hatton is also the epitome of what a boxing student should betalented and a fast...

Meningo death alarms staff at Makati hospital.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Allison W. Lopez and Rachel Miranda ALTHOUGH IT WAS NOT A CASE of swine flu, officials of the Ospital ng Makati were alarmed when a 51-year-old woman suspected of having contracted meningococcemia died a few days ago. The...

Camanava suicide cases down.
April 30, 2009... SUICIDE cases this year in the Camanava (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, Valenzuela) area went down by more than 50 percent, according to the latest data from the Northern Police District (NPD). The NPD said there were six cases of suicide from...

Sister of Paranaque solon arrested over P.5M debt.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Marlon Ramos THE POLICE ARRESTED A SISTER OF PARANAQUE Rep. Eduardo Zialcita in Las Pinas City the other day after she reportedly failed to pay for P500,000 worth of jewelry, the Inquirer learned yesterday. Senior Supt....

Miriam prods Villar to face Senate probe.
April 30, 2009... SEN. MIRIAM DEFENSOR-SANTIAGO YESterday prodded Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. to participate in the investigation to be conducted by the Senate acting as a Committee of the Whole on the complaint filed against him by Sen. Jamby Madrigal for alleged...

NCR matches Calabarzons 7 pool golds.
April 30, 2009... Byline: June Navarro TACLOBANNATIONAL CAPITAL REGION and Calabarzon equally shared 14 of the 16 gold medals at stake in the pool as they sank the competition yesterday in the Palarong Pambansa at the Leyte Sports Development Center. ...

Tax scam brains lingers in China.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Edson C. Tandoc Jr. A TEXTILE COMPANY OWNER ACCUSED OF masterminding the multimillion-peso tax credit scam in the 1990s is asking the Sandiganbayan antigraft court to allow him to continue to stay abroad. Through his lawyers,...

Nueva Ecija rice farmers confront low buying price.
April 30, 2009... CABANATUAN CITYASIDE FROM THE summer rains, farmers here are facing a sudden drop in the buying price of palay being offered by private traders. From a high of P15 to P16 a kilogram before the rains came shortly after Holy Week, the...

Mother of ex-PNP chief dies.
April 30, 2009... MAXIMA B. AGLIPAY, mother of former Philippine National Police chief Director General Edgar Aglipay, passed away on April 26. She was 85 years old. Her remains lie at the St. Alphonsus Mary de Liguori Parish Center in Magallanes Village,...

Only P400 per semester? CAP explains.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Gil C. Cabacungan Jr. THE COLLEGE ASSURANCE PLAN HAS paid nearly 10 times in tuition and other benefits what a disgruntled plan holder invested in its pioneering education plans two decades ago. CAP issued the clarification...

Oracle guns for PG Flex top seeding.
April 30, 2009... ORACLE RESIDEN-ces shoots for the No. 1 seed in the semifinals today when it tackles Magnolia Purewater in the 2009 PBL PG Flex Unity Cup at the San Juan gym. The 5-0 Titans, who sealed a semifinal seat with three games to spare, are...

Memory lapse?
April 30, 2009... Byline: Leila B. Salaverria A CASE OF MEMORY LAPSE OR just ignoring the obvious? Militant groups yesterday slammed Sen. Joker Arroyo for blaming them for promotions given to Jovito Palaparan in the Armed Forces of the Philippines,...

Police forces beefed up for Labor Day protests.
April 30, 2009... Byline: DJ Yap EASTERN POLICE DISTRICT director, Chief Supt. Lino Calingasan, said around 300 police officers from his district would be deployed to Manila and other neighboring cities where protesters are expected to gather on Labor...

Out of sight, out of mind.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Manuel L. Quezon III ITS PROBABLE THAT AS FAR AS THE GOVERNments of Brunei and the Netherlands are concerned, they wont object to Generals Alexander Yano and Cardozo Luna being made Philippine ambassadors to those countries. And...

Noel.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Conrado de Quiros ONE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS official was pissed off about the appointment of the retiring AFP chief of staff as ambassador to Brunei. The administration should stop treating the foreign service as a poor...

Radiomans killer gets up to 17 years for homicide.
April 30, 2009... DIGOS CITYA REGIONAL trial court yesterday found a 25-year-old suspect guilty of killing broadcaster Armando Pace in 2006. Judge Albert Axalan of the RTC Branch 20 sentenced Joy Anticamara, a jobless resident of Davao del Sur, to a prison...

Rescuers to be honored for bravery, sacrifice.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Villamor Visaya Jr., Inquirer Northern Luzon SANTIAGO CITY, ISABELAFOR more than a week, 19 soldiers trekked the treacherous Sierra Madre mountains, climbing 80-degree rocks and cliffs and crossing swollen rivers to retrieve the...

Roxas unstoppable to fix country, prepared to make it happen in 2010.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Michael Lim Ubac NOTHING CAN STOP SEN. MANUEL Roxas from running for President in 2010. What other meaning can my life have other than that? Roxas said at a dinner on Tuesday with Inquirer editors and reporters during which...

Piracy in Somalia.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Cynthia D. Balana A MARSHALL ISLANDS-flagged cargo ship with 19 Filipino seamen on board was freed by Somali pirates on April 25 but 15 other Filipinos were taken hostage with the capture of a German-owned ship on the same day,...

SC affirms forfeiture of telecom shares.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Norman Bordadora THE SUPREME COURT EN BANC HAS UPheld a Sandiganbayan decision directing the Philippine Telecommunications Investment Corp. to deliver to the government 111,415 PTIC shares registered in the name of Prime...

Siltation worries investors of aging power dams.
April 30, 2009... BAGUIO CITYA DAVAO-based firm, which bought two of the countrys oldest hydroelectric power facilities, is studying Benguets deteriorating watersheds because of their impact on its operations. SN Aboitiz Power Inc. (Snap), an affiliate of...

Solons told: Cha-cha, not Pacman, is bigger fight.
April 30, 2009... LAWMAKERS LEAVing the country to watch Manny Pacquiao fight with Ricky Hatton had better be prepared for a fight when they return, according to the chair of the House committee on good government and public accountability. Camiguin Rep....

Roach dead sure of Pacquiao win.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Roy Luarca LAS VEGASTHEYVE WORKED TOGETHER for eight years, but master trainer Freddie Roach continues to be amazed by Manny Pacquiaos development as a fighter. After working the mitts with his prized ward, once a...

Is summer over? Just early rains, says Pagasa.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Alcuin Papa THE INTERMITTENT showers in Metro Manila and other parts of the country dont a rainy season make. Summer, or the dry season, has not officially ended, as the southwest monsoon, which brings in the rainy...

Tams, Bombers trip FilOil foes.
April 30, 2009... FAR EASTERN U MADE A ROUSING DEBUT yesterday while Jose Rizal U needed the heroics of John Wilson and Marvin Hayes to nip Adamson in overtime, 71-70, in the FilOil Flying V Pre-Season MVP Cup in San Juan. Former RP Youth Team standout...

Teaching energy conservation.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Maricar Cinco, Bay, Laguna ELEMENTARY AND HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS ARE adopting a module on renewable energy and alternative fuels in their Science, English and Mathematics lesson plans to inculcate the value of energy conservation...

Top bets keep places in new SWS survey.
April 30, 2009... VICE PRESIDENT NOLI DE CASTRO AND senators Manny Villar, Loren Legarda and Francis Escudero retained their positions as the top recommended successors to President Macapagal-Arroyo in the Social Weather Stations (SWS) Survey for the First...

GMA: All bark, no bite.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Ramon Tulfo FROM DAY 1, WHEN SHE took over from deposed President Estrada, President Macapagal-Arroyo has been an ineffective leader around whom subordinates run circles. They neither respect nor fear her even if she...

No urgency for rate cuts, says BSP.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Daxim L. Lucas LOCAL BORROWING COSTS MAY BE NEARing their bottom after a string of interest rate cuts as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas yesterday said that there was ample liquidity in the financial system. BSP Governor...

2,000 vets receive US govt claims.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Desiree Caluza, Inquirer Northern Luzon BAGUIO CITYABOUT 2,000 Filipino war veterans have received financial benefits for service with the US military during World War II, a US Embassy official said here on Monday. Jonathan...

A dogs tale.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Veronica King A TINY WHIFF OF DUST SPELLED DISASTER FOR 8-year-old me. In less than a minute, a most anticipated afternoon of play turned into sick day, starting with the first sneeze until the last traces of hives vanished from...

Terrorist attract.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Conrado R. Banal III THE PUBLIC IS AGAIN IN TERROR of soaring fuel prices. Naturally, as shown in media reports, the issue is attracting certain politicos to switch to the attack mode. Sen. Francis Chiz Escudero, who is said...

SM group to invest P25B in 09 projects.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Doris C. Dumlao THE SM GROUP OF TAIPAN HENRY SY IS INVESTING P25 billion in the local economy this year to expand its retail, real estate, shopping mall, hotel and banking businesses. This capital outlay budgeted by SM...

Cement tariff back to 3% in June.
April 30, 2009... WITH CEMENT PRICES REmaining high despite the scrapping of levies imposed on the product, the Department of Trade and Industry is not inclined to recommend an extension of the zero-tariff regime for cement. Trade Secretary Peter Favila...

RP cracker maker takes a crack at Japan market.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Abigail L. Ho LOCAL BISCUIT MANUFAC-turer Monde MY San Corp. has inked an agreement with Japanese confectionery product wholesaler and retailer Yoshiya Co. Ltd., enabling the Philippine firm to export its products to Japan. ...

Improvement in power supply quality sought.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Amy R. Remo AN INDUSTRY GROUP IS SEEKing improvement in the quality of power supply in the country to reduce power-related costs and increase production of local industries. Arthur N. Escalante, national president of the...

Mass housing market still robust, says FLI.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Daxim L. Lucas SALES OF PUBLICLY LISTED Filinvest Land Inc. to the expatriate Filipino community remain strong despite the global economic crisis, as FLI caters mainly to the mass housing market, its head said yesterday. ...

Peza sees higher investments, exports in Q2.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Abigail L. Ho AFTER REGISTERING A 50-percent drop in investments in the first quarter, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority expects the second quarter to be much better, with demand for the countrys products starting to pick...

PSBank posts 21% growth in first-quarter net profit.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Doris C. Dumlao PHILIPPINE SAVINGS BANK, THE Metrobank groups thrift banking arm, posted a 21-percent year-on-year growth in first-quarter net profit to P303.73 million as core business expanded while asset quality improved...

PSE taps govt TV station for education drive.
April 30, 2009... THE PHILIPPINE STOCK EXCHANGE HAS tied up with the official government television National Broadcasting Network (NBN) to implement starting May 4 an aggressive stock market education campaign for the masses. The PSE yesterday signed a...

Crystal salt lamp, Crystal hot sauce and other bright new faves.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Reggie Aspiras I FIRST CAME ACROSS A HIMALAYAN crystal salt lamp when I visited my friend Judy Sim, a cancer survivor of 17 years. She had one in her living room and it was pretty. As we chatted, she stood up, rubbed her...

UK firm to invest P300M in IPVG.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Doris C. Dumlao THE UK-BASED GLOBAL Emerging Markets (GEM) group is set to invest up to P300 million in publicly listed technology firm IPVG Corp. IPVG announced yesterday that it had executed an investment agreement granting...

Duck-beef kimchi, paella pasta and the perfect unagi.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Restos at a glance WE RECENTLY SPENT A fortnight sampling three varying cuisines at three different restaurants, one of them out of town. King BeeSta. Rosa Estate, Bo San Jose, Sta. Rosa, Laguna; call 049-5440895. On any...

Dear Darla is light and healthy pizza.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Jaymee T. Gamil CRAVING FOR PIZZA BUT hesitant to ruin your hard-earned summer figure? Theres no need to choose between your stomach and your waistline. Yellow Cab has introduced the Dear Darla pizza, an innovative thin-crust...

A foodies Bacolod.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Reggie Aspiras MARINA, A BALIKBAYAN from California, has asked for dining destinations in Bacolod. Let my good friend and consummate foodie, movie director Peque Gallaga, take her around the towns key food addresses. You...

Home-tested specialties.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Jose Wendell Capili, Contributor MICHELE PANTOja tells me she had no plans of going into the food business at all. She had studied marketing and was doing public relations, events planning and marketing for a large group of...

Salt and pepper squid.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Norma Chikiamco, Contributor WHENEVER WE ORDER SALT AND pepper squid in a Chinese restaurant, everyone digs in hungrily as soon as the platter is served on the table. The crisp coating, the slightly salty, mildly spicy flavor, and...

Taste of Thailand and the real thing.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Vangie Baga-Reyes FOUR MONTHS INTO operation and Thai Patio remains at the top of its game. And its not really because of its classy, cozy interiors and the glass chairs that elegantly match the white motif or the framed...

Ming Tsai asks, But whens the chicken adobo coming?
April 30, 2009... Byline: Micky Fenix MING TSAI ATTRACTED A LOT of attention at the Edsa Shangri-La Hotel. But of course! After all, he has a hit TV program and best-selling books (copies in local bookstores have run out last time I checked). He gladly...

Ming Tsai raves about Philippine golf foodcrispy bangus.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Vangie Baga-Reyes HES THE CELEBRIty chef chefs would love to meet. So when chef Ming Tsai of the famed East Meets West and Simply Ming TV shows set foot on Philippine soil last Friday, local chefs felt privilegedand got very...

Coming back to LA.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Lea Salonga LOS ANGELESROB AND I ARrived here a few days ago. Needless to say, were still a bit jet-lagged. Our body clocks still havent quite adjusted to the time difference (despite our taking melatonin to help with the...

50 bets vie for Ms RP-Earth.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Armin Adina REIGNING MISS PHILIPPINES-EARTH Karla Paula Henry confessed to the Inquirer that she feels sad about giving up her national title. But upon seeing the 50 contestants vying for her crown, Henry said she is excited...

Cesar Montano hot on going global.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Marinel R. Cruz CESAR MONTANO, AWARD-WINNING ACtor-director and TV host recently went to the United States for a series of meetings with casting directors. Im doing a follow-up on several projects that Im eyeing, Cesar told the...

Honing a total personality.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Bayani San Diego Jr. CHILD STAR KRYSTAL REYES, who top-billed the Kapuso prime time series Mga Mata ni Anghelita, was discovered in one of the regular workshops conducted by the GMA Artist Center (GMAAC). Krystal was a...

Monsters rule in animated feature.
April 30, 2009... Byline: Nestor U. Torre WHEN WE HEARD THAT DreamWorks was producing an animated feature, Monsters vs. Aliens, we made a mental note to watch it the minute it opened in town, because we felt that the film production companys unique sense...