The police attacked shortly after 7:30 p.m. after Mendoza was heard firing his gun from inside the bus. Bus driver Alberto Lubang, 38, had escaped minutes before the attack and told police that hostages had already been killed. Some observers said Mendoza was provoked by the sight of his emotional policeman-brother Gregorio Mendoza being pacified and taken away.

Policemen spent several minutes trying to enter through the doors and windows, using sledgehammers. They threw tear gas inside the bus before forcing open the emergency exit in the back at 8:13 p.m. By that time, Mendoza was dead, and so were apparently some of the hostages.

Mendoza was confirmed dead after a shot in the head from a police sniper. The hostage taker was armed with an M-16 and a .45 caliber pistol.

Eight hostages were confirmed dead and that seven were alive, according to Health Secretary Enrique Ona.

Those who survived were being treated in different hospitals, Ona said.

One of the survivors – a Chinese national currently being treated at the Ospital ng Maynila (OM) – narrated that Mendoza started randomly firing at the hostages at around 8 p.m. She said her husband, who was among the fatalities, used his body to shield her from the spray of bullets.

This resulted in the hostages sustaining gunshot wounds in different parts of their bodies.

She appealed to authorities to bring to OM her three young children, who might have been taken to another hospital.

The four hostages in OM are now stable, according to a report by Mariz Umali, and said they just wanted to go back to their hotels to be able to rest.

Mendoza was fired from his post as chief of the Manila Police’s Mobile Patrol Unit in 2008 after he was charged with robbery and extortion, or the so-called hulidap practice of some police of planting evidence and seeking a pay-off from the victims.

Mendoza claimed he was innocent and appealed to be reinstated. His sympathetic brother and fellow policeman, SPO2 Gregorio Mendoza, told reporters his kuya had grown tired of waiting for justice.

He hijacked the bus at around 10 a.m. after hitching a ride just as the tourists were moving from Fort Santiago to Manila Ocean Park. The bus stopped in front of the Quirino Grandstand, the festive site of President Noynoy Aquino’s inauguration last June 30.

That was where Mendoza posted hand-written messages on the bus windows, including “Big deal will start after 3 p.m. today.” Police negotiators tried in vain to convince him to surrender. The stand-off ended in bloodshed in the heart of Manila’s tourist district.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda told Palace reporters two hours after the assault that President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III was “meeting with the police, the DILG officials, and [Manila] Mayor [Alfredo] Lim. As of now, four hostages has been confirmed dead, one in critical condition. We will be issuing a statement later tonight.”

Of the six hostages taken to Ospital ng Maynila, two were declared dead after sustaining several gunshot wounds in different parts of the body.

Meanwhile, the Security Bureau of Hong Kong advised its citizens to avoid all travel to the Philippines an hour after the hostage crisis ended.

In an outbound travel alert, the Security Bureau, changed its “amber alert warning” — meaning there were signs of threat — for the Philippines to a “black alert warning” indicating severe threats on the country’s security.

The Hong Kong warning stated that a “serious kidnap incident happened in the Philippines. [R]esidents should avoid all travel to the country; those who are already there should attend to their personal safety and exercise caution.”

From the onset of this incident, the hostage-taker seemed to not be belligerent, as shown by the release of hostages. These were encouraging signs.

We were going to wait him out. The idea was to let the ground commanders who are the experts in this field handle the operation with minimal interference from people who are less expert.

But the situation deteriorated rapidly when, during the course of the negotiations, he was given the letter of the Ombudsman in which she promised to personally review his case. As he was reading the contents of the letter, while talking to an unknown individual on the phone, he became increasingly agitated.

The presence of his brother also added to the tension.

At this point, he threatened to kill a hostage. The police decided to remove the brother from the scene. As the negotiators were departing, the negotiators were shot at.

Media coverage of his brother being taken into custody further agitated the hostage-taker.

Shots were fired. They seemed to be warning shots, as there was no audible indication of tumult or chaos to show that the hostages were in immediate danger.

Nonetheless, the negotiators tried to reestablish contact the hostage-taker but they were unsuccessful as the cellphone of the hostage-taker was continuously busy. He also refused to answer the throw-phone provided for him by the authorities.

The escape of the driver, combined with his reports that the hostages were being harmed, forced the assault to happen. When the vehicle began to move, and with reports that he had hand grenades, a decision was made to immobilize the vehicle as it would have made the situation even more dangerous.

As we know, the incident tragically ended in the deaths of eight innocent civilians.

We expect more of the facts to come to light and I have ordered Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo and Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to thoroughly lead this review.

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino boxing champ and now Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao and former Wowowee host Willie Revillame hogged the Google searches of netizens in the country for the week of August 6 to 12, according to Google Zeitgeist.

Both made headlines in the past week, with Pacquiao planning to train at the Batasang Pambansa complex for his upcoming fight with Antonio Margarito.

He dropped the plan, though, after House Speaker Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte Jr. said it was not a good idea.

Revillame, meanwhile, earlier announced that he is leaving ABS-CBN despite his existing contract obligations with the network, claiming unfair treatment.

In particular, he cried foul over the management’s move to withdraw from a reported initial agreement that he would return to noontime show Wowowee on July 31.

Days before July 31, ABS-CBN announced that Wowowee would be replaced by a new game and variety show titled Pilipinas Win the Win and that Revillame would be given a new program.

Other top searches in the week include sports and athletes, celebrities, television shows and new gadgets.

Below is the full list of the fastest rising newsmakers and topics in the country from August 6 to 12, as provided by Google Zeitgeist:

Newsmakers

1. Manny Pacquiao
2. Willie Revillame
3. Ivan Padilla
4. Miley Cyrus
5. Kobe Bryant
6. Cheryl Cole
7. Vanessa Hudgens
8. Mayweather
9. Juan Manuel Marquez
10. Venus Williams

Topics

1. NBA
2. UFC
3. Playstation 3
4. Glee
5. Miss Universe
6. Starcraft 2
7. Smart Gilas
8. Hacienda Luisita
9. Weather forecast Philippines
10. iPhone 4

MANILA, Philippines—A cut-and-paste affair in the House of Representatives, but this may not be to the liking of Jinkee Pacquiao.

Apparently unknown to her and millions of fans of the world boxing champ, Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao may have married a certain “Elizabeth B. Salvacion” as indicated in the new congressman’s official website in the House of Representatives.

Who’s she?

At the onset, nobody seemed to have an inkling about the real identity of Salvacion, but for a fleeting moment she was the official better half of the boxing champ.

As everyone knows, Pacquiao is married to Maria Geraldine “Jinkee” Jamora, and they have four children.

Through a Google search, it turns out that Salvacion is the spouse of Rep. Andres Salvacion Jr. of the third District of Leyte.

The web page also contained other interesting information—Pacquiao’s date of birth: “28 May 1942.”If he were 68, Pacquiao could be the only senior citizen to win in seven boxing divisions.

The pride of the Philippines now wants to make history in the House after he was elected representative of the lone district of Sarangani last May.

The boxer-turned-lawmaker is 31 years old since he was born on Dec. 17, 1978 in Bukidnon.

It was evident that most of Representative Salvacion’s personal information was copied by the still-to-be-identified culprit, including the Leyte’s congressman’s birthday, age, civil status and spouse’ name.

The Information and Communication Technology Service was at a loss when asked about the glaring error in Pacquiao’s member information web page. (http://www.congress.gov.ph/members/search.php?congress=15&id=pacquiao).

However, the error-filled page was taken down Tuesday afternoon, but the information on his date of birth, civil service status and spouse’ name were left vacant.

The mix-up provided a comic relief to the neophyte congressman and members of the House press corps.

While he was personally checking the erroneous website information at the press room (enterprising reporters have managed to save a copy of the old website), the Barong-clad boxer didn’t give a hoot.

Cracking a joke, he said:

“I’m already 68? But how old am I? Uugod-ugod na ako nun (I would have been wobbly by then).”

He was obviously thankful when shown with an updated version of the website.

But when a reporter pointed out that the updated version did not contain the name of his spouse and other personal details, he said:

“Ha? So I’m not married?”

Nonetheless, he gave a nonchalant shrug, telling the media to forget about the unfortunate episode.

“No (need for apology). It’s O.K. It’s just an oversight … and people know how old I am, where I live, who is my wife and how many children I have,” he said, politely evading a question if he had more than one wife.

In a statement, House Secretary General Marilyn Barua-Yap appeared to have been unaware of the whole thing.

“The Secretary General’s office have not released any data on the personal information submitted by members of the House of Representatives for website posting. We are looking into the matter,”
Yap said.

Obviously on the defensive, she stressed that her office could not possibly be the source of said wrong information because “we don’t release any data on the personal information of House members without their consent.”

“Those are basic but very important data that we should be very careful about. We always double check our data. We are checking because it’s unfair to Representative Pacquiao and his family and the people of Sarangani,” she said.

What appears to be the only redeeming value in Pacquiao’s web page is a lone entry under “House bills co-authored.”

Less than a month after Congress’ opening, Pacquiao was able to file a bill—House Bill No. 1098 seeking the postponement of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections set for Oct. 2010.

Querubin was freed after Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Ricardo David signed the detained official’s provisional release papers Tuesday night.

GMA News reported that Querubin walked out of his cell at noon to the warm welcome of his family and supporters.

In an interview with reporters at Camp Aguinaldo, Querubin said he did not request for his release from detention.

“Let’s be clear about it, this is not my initiative. Initiative ito ng AFP,” said Querubin, who is facing trial before a military tribunal for a charge of mutiny following his group’s alleged plot to march and subsequently withdraw their support from then President Arroyo in February 2006.

“Right after ni-release si Danny [Lim] nung June 1, kinabukasan pumunta si Gen. Ordoñez. Nag-offer na ire-release ako provided I will write the chief of staff. But I declined,” Querubin said.

He will be placed under the custody of Brig. Gen. Reynaldo Ordoñez, head of the AFP’s Defense Reform Office.

Former Scout Ranger chief Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim, another leader in the foiled plot against Arroyo, was also placed under the custody of Ordoñez upon his release last May 31 by then AFP chief Gen. Delfin Bangit. More than a week later, Bangit also gave provisional liberty to nine Scout Ranger officers linked to the plot.

Querubin said he insisted that he would wait until his motion to dismiss their case would be resolved so the officers accused in the alleged 2006 coup attempt could move on with their lives.

He asserted that the officers are not guilty of any crime so he did not file a request for his release. “Yun na lang naiwan sa akin, yung dignity ko at pride, ayaw kong sumulat,” he said.

Optional retirement

In a phone-patch interview with GMA News’ Arnold Clavio before his release, Querubin said, “Matagal ko nang hinihintay ito para makasama ko ang pamilya ko. Gusto ko na ring madalaw ang mother ko.”

Asked about his plans after his release, he said, “I’ll be filing my optional retirement after ma-dismiss yung case.”

To his family, he said, “Magbabayad-utang ako sa kanila, lalo na sa kanilang mga sakripisyo.”

Querubin also said he will continue his struggles for reform. “Kahit private citizen na lang… tuloy ang laban for good governance.” He also called on the officers in the field to work for reforms in the government.

Earlier, AFP spokesman Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta announced Querubin’s imminent release following the signing of the release papers by Gen. David.

“Anytime today [Wednesday] he is a free man. It depends on him when he wants to get out of detention …. He is given the liberty to leave detention effective today, ” AFP spokesman Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta said in an interview on dwIZ radio.

But Mabanta said Querubin will still have to attend all the hearings in his general court martial and is not allowed to leave the country.

“Di pupuwede (No he cannot),” he said, when asked if the release order meant Querubin can leave the Philippines.

Querubin was deemed resigned from the military service when he ran for senator in the May 10 elections under the Nacionalista Party. He did not succeed in his electoral bid.

No such “privilege” for Trillanes

On the other hand, Mabanta said the AFP cannot grant a similar “privilege” for detained Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, who figured in a mutiny in 2003 and a hotel siege in 2007.

“Ang kanya sa civilian court ito (Trillanes’ case is with a civilian court) … It really depends on the courts of law,” he said.— LBG/YA, GMANews.TV

However, Presidential Communications Group official Herminio Coloma hinted Tuesday this will only be a last resort as the Palace is wary of triggering a crisis mentality.

“Palagay ko di pa dapat magkaroon ng crisis mentality. Ang importante, alamin muna natin ang situation ang resources available para matugunan ang problema (I do not think we should have a crisis mentality. The important thing is to get all available details on the situation so we can address the problem properly),” Coloma said in an interview on dzXL radio.

He reassured the public the Palace will come up with a solution after considering all the information they can gather.

“Pinagaaralang mabuti ang sitwasyon ngayon. Ihinahanda ang measures para matugunan ang problemang yan (We are studying the situation now. We will come up with measures to address the problem),” Coloma said.

Residents in several areas of Metro Manila are now queueing up to get their supply of water from the tanker trucks of concessionaire Maynilad Water.

Security personnel have been accompanying the trucks to deal with agitated residents, a dzBB radio report said.

The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) has also deployed fire trucks to distribute water in affected areas.

However, BFP Metro Manila chief Senior Superintendent Pablito Cordeta warned that the water from their tankers may not be safe for drinking or cooking. –VVP, GMANews.TV

Customers of Maynilad Water Services Inc. will experience disruptions in their water supply starting Friday due to low water levels from the Angat Dam, the water distributor said.

Maynilad said in a statement on Friday that it will implement rotating water schedules in eleven cities in Metro Manila and the nearby province of Cavite until July 23 due to a 30-percent cut in the water supply it has been receiving from the Angat Dam. (See complete schedule here)

“Since February this year, our water allocation from Angat Dam has been steadily reduced because of El Niño… For the month of July, our allocation has been cut by 30 percent and as a result, around 46 percent of our customer base have experienced reduced water pressure,” the water distributor said in its release.

A total of 45 barangays in Quezon City, Caloocan, Malabon, Valenzuela, Las Pinas and Navotas have been “severely affected” by the water reduction, it added.

Maynilad said the scheduled water disruptions are only to “mitigate” the effects of the water supply reduction, and assured its consumers that it is addressing the problem.

The water distributor has also hired additional private water tankers to provide free water supply, it said in its release.

The water level in Angat Dam, where Metro Manila gets most of its water supply, has been receding in the past weeks due to insufficient rainfall. (See: ‘Basyang’ of no help to Angat Dam)

Aside from providing water to Metro Manila, Angat Dam’s multipurpose reservoir in Norzagaray, Bulacan also irrigates 27,000 hectares of farmland planted to rice in the said province.

Meralco, whose entire franchise area was affected, said owners were partly to blame for the blackout as they failed to roll up their billboards, which crashed on some power lines.

“Lahat ng apektado na customer kumukuha sa Meralco ng kuryente (The affected included all of Meralco’s customers),” Meralco’s Teresa Adriano said on dzBB radio early Wednesday.

Adriano said Meralco had already warned owners to roll down their billboards as early as Tuesday noon.

“Ayon sa monitoring, may billboards na bumagsak sa ating mga linya (According to our monitoring, some billboards fell on our power lines),” she said.

“Dapat alam nila na pag bagyo i-roll ang billboard (They already knew to roll up their billboards when there is such a storm),” she added.

She said the blackout started at 12:42 a.m.

Meralco services the entire Metro Manila and parts of Laguna, Quezon, Cavite and Bulacan.

Adriano urged the public to call or text Meralco’s hotlines at 16211 or 0917-5592824.

The power outage forced the Metro Rail Transit and the Light Rail Transit to suspend operations early Wednesday. (See: Blackout strands MRT-LRT commuters)

She said cut-off lines included those in North and South Luzon Expressways, NLEX exit at Monumento, and the service road at Baesa in Caloocan City.

As of 4 a.m., she said some circuits were restored but these were in Calamba and Cabuyao in Laguna; and Trece Martires City in Cavite.

There was still zero restoration in Metro Manila as of 4 a.m. as the lines of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines are still down, she admitted.

She added that even if power from the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) were restored, Meralco still has to re-check its lines.

Still a workday Wednesday

Despite the power outage and damages caused by Basyang, work continued at some government offices Wednesday.

Radio dzBB’s Benjie Liwanag Jr. reported that as of Wednesday morning, government agencies did not issue an order to suspend work for the day.

In Manila, Mayor Alfredo Lim ordered city employees to report for duty, but said those whose houses were flooded can be “excused.”

“Sinuswelduhan rin naman sila (They are getting their salaries so they should report for work),” Lim said in an interview on dwIZ radio.

But at the Senate, the Office of the Senate President canceled work for Wednesday due to the floods and power outage caused by Basyang.

Radio dwIZ reported the Office of the Senate President issued the announcement at 6 a.m.

Earlier, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) announced it was leaving to college administrators the decision on whether to suspend classes.

CHED Executive Director Julito Vitriolo, in an interview over dzBB radio, reminded school heads that although the Signal No. 2 suspension of classes applies only to high schools and lower-grade schools, they must take into consideration the dangers and difficulties of commuting through impassable streets and coping with power outages. [See: CHED advice to colleges: Suspend classes at your discretion]

Man electrocuted in Marikina

Despite the blackout in Metro Manila, a man was electrocuted when he touched a high-tension wire in Marikina City before dawn Wednesday.

Radio dzBB reported the incident occurred at Calumpang Street in Barangay San Roque. The still-unidentified man suffered third-degree burns.

Police said the man may have been drunk. — LBG, GMANews.TV

Installed as AFP chief was Lt. Gen. Ricardo David, who took over from Lt. Gen. Nestor Ochoa, who was designated military chief in an acting capacity following the early retirement of General Delfin Bangit.

Ito ang unang pagkakataon kong makasama kayo bilang inyong Pangulo at inyong commander-in-chief. Ngunit noong Miyerkules, natanggap ko na ang inyong unang parangal: hindi lang ako, kundi ang buong sambayanan ay nagalak sa propesyonalismo, disiplina, at kurtesiyang inialay ninyo hindi lang sa akin, kundi sa buong bansa.

I commend all of you: officers and men and women of our Armed Forces, for the dedication to duty you displayed during the last elections. Kayo ang tagapagtanggol ng ating estado: ito ay nakasaad sa ating Saligang Batas. Karapat-dapat lamang na ang unang pahayag ko sa inyo bilang inyong Pangulo ay ang pagpapaabot ng pasasalamat ng sambayanang Pilipino sa pagganap ninyo ng inyong mga tungkulin sa nakaraang kampanya at halalan: wala kayong kinilingan kundi ang mamamayang Pilipino. Wala kayong piniling panig kundi ang pagpapalakas lamang ng ating demoksraya.

Sa araw na ito, nais ko kayong kausapin nang tapat at nang walang paliguy-ligoy. Marami tayong haharapin na pagsubok. Alam ko na pinakinggan niyo ang aking Inaugural Address at alam na ninyo na malapit kayo sa aking isipan. Makakaasa kayo na ang inyong mga pangangailangan ay tututukan ng aking administrasyon.

Katulad ng sinabi ko noong Miyerkules, nagsisimula ang wastong pamumuno sa pagpili ng mga wastong pinuno. Our Constitution explicitly provides for civilian authority over the military. That is why your commander-in-chief is a civilian, and his alter ego for the Department of Defense is one, too. This is why the Secretary of National Defense, while a distinguished veteran officer, has spent ample time in civilian life. This is also why your senior officers must undergo confirmation by the Commission on Appointments of Congress.

Within the Armed Forces, there is a structure that places a general officer at the head of the officer corps together with your major service commanders. This is why we have a chief of staff who is appointed by the commander-in-chief.

Noong Hunyo 29, aking ipinakilala si retired Lt. Gen. Voltaire Gazmin bilang aking Secretary of National Defense, at si Lt. Gen. Ricardo David bilang susunod na AFP chief of staff. Nandito tayo ngayon upang saksihan ang assumption of command ni General David, at upang ipaabot ko sa kaniya, at sa inyo, ang mga magiging patakaran ng ating pamahalaan.

I expect of you professionalism, integrity, discipline, valor, and hard work. You can expect the same of me.

Ang inyong propesyonalismo – ang pagsusunod sa mga utos na legal, sa wastong paraan ng walang pasubali – ay posible lamang kung nagsisimula ang propesyonalismong ito sa mga hanay ng inyong Pangulo at mga heneral. Wala akong duda na nais ng ating officer corps na panatilihin ang kanilang integridad. Makakasiguro kayong lahat na ang inyong Pangulo at ang ating Kalihim Gazmin ay hindi gagamitin ang sistema ng pagpili at pagpromote upang pairalin ang pansariling interes.

Ang iba sa ating mga officers na kamakailan lamang ay hindi nakaabot sa deadline ng Commission ng Appointments, ay makakasiguro na ang kanilang mga promotion ay isusumiteng muli sa simula ng sesyon ng Kongreso. Katulad ng sinabi ko noong Pangulong-halal na ako, sisiguraduhin lang natin na basta’t dumaan sa wastong proseso ang mga promosyong ito, ipapadala natin ang mga ito sa lehislatura.

Ngunit kahit nakatanggap na ang inyong mga koronel at heneral ng karapat-dapat na promosyon, kung ang ating mga kawal ay kulang sa kagamitan, benepisyo at tirahan, wala sa atin ang makakagawa ng ating mga tungkulin.

Alam nating lahat na kakambal ng isang masiglang ekonomiya ang kapayapaan at seguridad. Without stability we cannot expect people to invest in our county. Achieving and maintaining stability is your obligation. Ngunit, naiintindihan ko na mahirap itong makamit hangga’t hindi sapat sa kagamitan at kaalaman ng ating hukbong sandatahan. Hangga’t hindi natutugunan ang mga pangangailan ng bawat sundalo, paano matutugunan ng bawat sundalo ang pangangailangan ng sambayanan?

Tell us what you need and we will give it to you, as long as they are based on principles of professionalism and utilitarianism; as long as they will benefit the whole institution and not only the interests of a few. If we use and allocate our resources efficiently, we will not only be able to improve the well-being of our armed forces but also that of our citizenry. With a livelier and more responsive economy, we will be able to further address your needs.

Kaya inatasan ko si Secretary Gazmin na siguraduhin na ang modernisasyon ng ating hukbong sandatahan ay hindi lamang maitutuloy, kundi higit na magiging instrumento pa para sa pagpapatibay at pagpapalakas ng inyong pagmamahal at pagsisilbi sa sambayanan. Kasama na dito ang pagpapalawak ng inyong hanay, dahil habang dumoble na ang ating populasyon, nanatili pa rin ang inyong bilang. Sibilyan man o militar, hindi kailangang puro pagtitiis ang tadhana ng Pilipino. Uulitin ko ang sinabi ko sa bayan at sa mundo: hindi tama na ang nagmamalasakit ay kinakawawa.

Therefore, the things I expect of you, and which you can expect of your commander-in-chief, are things necessary to undertake the modernization of our armed forces. If all of us follow the rules, and insist on professionalism, integrity is enhanced. If we undertake our tasks with discipline, we can confront all challenges with the valor the history of our country has proven we all have. If we all work hard, we can find creative solutions to our problems, assured of strategic harmony within the armed forces, and between the civilians and the military.

I say strategic harmony because we must confront the reality that over the past years, strategy took a back seat to tactical considerations. I believe that the military functions best when the civilian and military leadership all share a clear understanding of the national security, and have crafted a clear plan which in turn can properly inform tactical decisions.

Ang ating bagong chief of staff ay nagpatunay na ang mga konsiderasyong ito ay maisusulong niya anuman ang pagsubok na haharapin.

We will need the experience, the expertise, and known probity of General Ricardo David, who shares my view that our national security objectives should be a multi-stakeholder effort focused on protecting our rights and civil liberties. He brings with him years of experience as NOLCOM commander which, I am confident, will likewise benefit the rest of the nation, not just Luzon.

In General David, I expect not only decisive leadership, but an innovative spirit that would drive reform in the Armed Forces, as well as the effective and efficient realization of the national defense and security thrusts that I have just outlined. I ask everyone to support your new chief of staff, to follow the chain of command and to look forward to proud and glorious days ahead.

As our country suffered, so have our soldiers, and the situation could only worsen unless priorities are met. Simple problems and deficiencies have compounded over the years due to corruption, which our administration has vowed to stop. I expect the entire Armed Forces of the Philippines to be the vanguard of the government’s quest to reform itself, to clean up its own backyard to serve as the model and inspiration for other government agencies.

With your long tradition of sustaining the high military ideals of honor and discipline, sacrifice and dedication to serve the people and country, I am certain that the Armed Forces will once again take the lead in delivering our country and our people lasting peace and stability, development and social progress.

Men and women of the armed forces: to adopt the words of Winston Churchill, I will give you the tools to do your job. I will hold all of you to the highest standards not because I doubt you, but precisely because I have the fullest confidence in all of you. You have done well and will do even better; I will be fair, just, and supportive. I expect you to be the same. Our people expect no less of all of us, and I know that you will further consecrate yourselves to defending our democracy, and that you will fight for our Republic, for the liberty and prosperity of our people.

Sa ating kasundaluhan, kasama ninyo ako sa adhikaing magkaroon ng repormang makabuluhan, makatao, maka-diyos at maka-bayan. Maraming salamat po sa inyong lahat! Mabuhay ang Hukbong Sandatahan ng Sambayanang Pilipino!

Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III on Wednesday took his oath of office as the country’s 15th president, marking the first peaceful transfer of power in the country in more than a decade.

A sea of yellow-clad supporters witnessed the inauguration of Aquino, the son of democracy icons Corazon Aquino and Benigno Aquino Jr., at the historic Quirino Grandstand in Manila at 12 noon as mandated by the 1987 Constitution.

Aquino took his oath before Supreme Court Associate Justice Conchita Carpio-Morales, who also administered the oath of office of Vice President Jejomar Binay earlier.

About two hours earlier, Aquino fetched outgoing President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo from Malacañang and shared a car with her to Luneta, where she was fetched by a private car and taken to her oath-taking ceremony as representative for Pampanga’s second district.

The last time the Philippines witnessed a peaceful transition between two administrations was in 1998, when President Joseph Estrada took the reins of power with a landslide victory. He was ousted in 2001 over corruption charges and replaced by his then vice president Arroyo, who was proclaimed the winner in the 2004 presidential elections and served for a total of nine years.

Estrada ran again in the May 10 elections, but was edged out by Aquino who won by more than 5.7 million votes over the former president, who came in second.

Estrada and his predecessor, former president Fidel Ramos, were among the dignitaries that graced Aquino’s inauguration along with foreign diplomats and incoming government officials.

Aquino had been serving as senator since 2007 before he was ushered into the presidential race following the death of his mother, former President Corazon Aquino, in August last year. During his campaign, he vowed to eradicate corrupt practices that triggered several scandals during the Arroyo administration.

Set an example

Matimtim kong pinanunumpaan [o pinatotohanan] na tutuparin ko nang buong katapatan at sigasig ang aking mga tungkulin bilang Pangulo ng Pilipinas, pangangalagaan at ipagtatanggol ang kanyang Konstitusyon, ipatutupad ang mga batas nito, magiging makatarungan sa bawat tao, at itatalaga ang aking sarili sa paglilingkod sa Bansa. Kasihan nawa ako ng Diyos.”

In his inaugural speech rendered mostly in Filipino, Aquino vowed to “end bad governance” and set an example in getting rid of corruption in public administration.

“Ngayon, sa araw na ito – dito magwawakas ang pamumunong manhid sa mga daing ng taumbayan,” he asserted.

He recalled the sacrifices of his parents in restoring democracy in the Philippines following the Martial Law years under strongman Ferdinand Marcos, and said he would strive to bring the benefits of democracy to the majority of Filipinos.

He said his campaign slogan of “Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap” was not only “pang-slogan o pang-poster” but would serve as the basis of the Aquino administration.

“Sisikapin kong maging isang mabuting ehemplo,” he said.

Aquino said he intends to start suppressing corruption in government by dealing with Mrs. Arroyo’s last-minute appointments before she bowed out of office.

“Sisimulan natin ang pagababalik ng tiwala [sa gobyerno] sa pamamagitan ng pag-usisa sa midnight appointments,” he said.

He added that he would strengthen the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s tax collection measures as a means to fight corruption.

“Hindi si Noynoy ang gumawa ng paraan, kayo ang dahilan kung bakit ngayon, magtatapos na ang pagtitiis ng sambayanan. Ito naman ang umpisa ng kalbaryo ko, ngunit kung marami tayong magpapasan ng krus ay kakayanin natin ito, gaano man kabigat,” he said.

“Tayo na sa matuwid na landas,” Aquino concluded.

Guests

An innovation at the 2010 inaugural ceremonies was the “Panata sa Pagbabago,” led by around 20 volunteer leaders who were vital to Aquino’s campaign.

After the Panata sa Pagbabago, the new president will proceed to Malacañang, where he will hold his first Cabinet meeting. [For the full schedule, view this]

The campaign pledge of Binay, the running mate of Estrada, during the campaign was to make the Philippines as well-administered as Makati City, the country’s business and financial center. The Binays have been ruling Makati City ever since Mrs. Aquino made Binay, then a human rights lawyer, officer-in-charge of the city after martial law.

Binay defeated his closest rival Sen. Manuel “Mar” Roxas II, the running mate of Aquino, by only 727,084 votes.

Among the more than 100 foreign dignitaries present at the inaugural ceremony were East Timor president Jose Ramos-Horta, US Trade Representative Ron Kirk, and US ambassador to the Philippines Harry K. Thomas Jr.

Aquino’s sisters and other influential guests milled about in the historic Manila Hotel before the inauguration. Beneath ornate chandeliers detailed with capiz, barong-clad men and ladies in gowns waited in the air-conditioned hall as the notables made their way down the red carpet.

Sea of yellow

But most everyone else sweated it out at Luneta Park, braving the early morning rain and the sweltering heat that followed.

Thousands of people, most of them clad in the Aquinos’ signature yellow color, stood in front of the Quirino grandstand. Some came well-prepared with mats and umbrellas, while others were resourceful and used whatever they could find lying around. Newspapers and garbage bags were spread out and used to provide some protection from the sun.

Some had been there since the night before, coming from outside Manila like the Cudo family from Tarlac. Mr. and Mrs. Cudo along with their two children were all in yellow, and had hoped to get seats at the grandstand. But even without the seats, the Cudos were a merry bunch, pleased to be there to show support for their president of choice.

“I know him personally,” said Mr. Cudo, who is a second-generation planter from Tarlac.

“Noynoy is very down-to-earth, very approachable,” shared Mrs. Cudo, who recalled that at a party a few weeks ago he was even dancing with them.

Others had never met the man, nor did they have hopes to ever meet him, but they, too, trooped to Luneta to witness the inaugural.

“Hindi ko makakausap yun. Siyempre presidente yun eh. Tagahanga po ako. Gusto ko lang makita si Noynoy,” said Gina Asuncion, who lives in Manila with her cousin.

“I’m going to school here, so I figured I might as well be part of the local experience,” said Brian Schem, who is taking up Public Health in UP Manila, but is from Washington.

Many students came in groups, like Lawrence Malonzo from Sta. Cecilia College in Valenzuela City. A 19 year-old HRM student, Malonzo, voted for Noynoy because he believes his candidate represents hope for the future of the Philippines.

He is also a supporter of Shalani Soledad. “Maganda na, matalino pa, mabait pa. Marami siyang nagawa para sa amin. Kagaya noong bagyong Ondoy,” said Malonzo. Asked what he thought of the opinion that the President and Soledad do not a good match make, he disagreed vehemently. “Inggitera lang sila.”

Gigi Nalco walked all the way from Tondo, pushing her eight year-old son in a wheelchair. Nalco said they had received no aid from the past administration. “Gusto kong matulungan kami, para mabigyan kami ng titirhan,” said Nalco, who has six children.

In his inauguration speech, President Aquino said he would improve tax collection in order to fund the people’s needs, including housing in safe communities.

Although the people in the crowd came from all walks of life and by different means, they all expressed one thing in common: hope in the new president and their personal wishes for a better future. – With a report from CARMELA G. LAPEÑA/YA, GMANews.TV

Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine.

LOS ANGELES —That’s right. And what a happy coincidence.

To paraphrase that memorable line delivered by Humphrey Bogart (as Rick Plaine) as he watches Ingrid Bergman (as Ilsa Lund Laszlo) walking into his gin joint in that memorable scene from Casablanca, of all the cafes in all the counties in all of California, Krista Ranillo walks into the Urth Caffé on 451 S. Hewitt Street in this city one balmy summer afternoon in the arms of my good friend Tim Evans (of the US Immigration). Urth is the favorite hangout of celebrities of all types (“Paris Hilton among them,” Urth’s Filipino manager Tyrone Arenal tells us).

It’s destiny (that seems to be the favorite word these days, isn’t it?), I tell myself, recalling how the controversial daughter of Mat Ranillo III has been evading me like a slippery eel, playing hide-and-seek with me since that earth-shaking…er, “scandal?”…hit the headlines early last year, searing the pages of movie magazines with spicy-hot accounts of her and his (no name, please, just an italicized pronoun) every move imagined or with a semblance of truth and/or meaty morsels secretly fed to movie writers by people claiming to be moving in their circle.

Neither Krista nor he has confirmed or admitted anything. All of last year, Krista gave movie writers a run for their pens, forever winning in the patintero she was playing with them. I moved heaven and earth, pulling all the strings that I could, trying to arrange a one-on-one with her, all to no avail, with her “handlers” and manager throwing their hands up, banging their heads on the wall, saying so sorry, “Ayaw niya talaga!”

And several months later, all through 2009 The Year of the Pig and halfway through 2010 The Year of the Tiger, without me totally giving up on her, of all the cafes in all the counties in all of California she will walk right smack into this one where Tim and I have been sitting at a little table outside Urth all afternoon shooting the breeze.

For a while, as I watch Krista and Tim approach our table, I resist the temptation to sing, around the world I’ve searched for you; I’ve travelled on when hope was gone to keep a rendezvous. I knew somewhere sometimes somehow, you’d look at me and I would see the smile you’re smiling now…

“Para talagang pinagtagpo kayo ng kapalaran,” says Tim who is up-to-date with showbiz goings-on back home.

You see, as we prepare to leave, Tim says he has to go back inside Urth to get a small take-home box for our leftover cheescake (yummy!). Have we left 10 seconds earlier, we would have missed Krista. Yes, as I’ve been saying, it’s destiny.

“I was going out when I heard somebody call my name. I turned and found out who was calling me. Krista was sitting alone at a corner table, waiting for her strawberry shake,” says Tim. “Amanda Seyfried (who plays Meryl Streep in Mama Mia!) was seated at a table next to Krista’s. So, heto na siya.”

After the hugging and the embracing that bridge the yawning gap and letting bygones be bygones without recrimination (yes, she was said to be “mad” at me for calling her…never mind), we sit down for the long-delayed, almost-never-have-been one-on-one.

I start with the harmless, “warm-up” question.

So what has Krista been doing lately?

“Hayun, I’m hitting the gym every day and then nagyo-yoga ako. I’m also preparing dahil mag-i-enroll ako sa Law this year.”

She’s a bright girl, a dean’s lister no less at Ateneo where she graduated with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies (minor in Communication Arts and Psychology).

“Right after college,” she’s saying, “I had a short stint as reporter on (ABS-CBN’s)TV Patrol but since artista talaga ako, I quit and went into acting.”

I comment that she looks very happy, unlike the last time I saw her when she acted like…hmmmm…a cat on a hot tin roof, so stressed-out, so harrassed, so…paranoid? (If you were in her place in such a situation, hounded by the press and being called names, you too would feel the same way, wouldn’t you?)

Yes, she’s in love, again, this time with another guy who has to remain unidentified (as per Krista’s request) for the time being, with a Chinese surname, and is said to own a supermarket in California. Very rich and very eligible, rumored to have been the former boyfriend of a Filipina actress (the “ex” of a popular TV-movie actor now going steady with his loveteam-mate) and a TV host who used to write a column for the Life section of this paper. He’s a bachelor, quite goodlooking.

Set as wallpaper of Krista’s celfone is her picture with her new love and under it is this quotation she says they have found in a fortune cookie: You will take a chance in the future. “It was during our dinner on our first date,” she reveals, adding, “Actually, kababata ko siya. Hindi pa ako artista kilala ko na siya, dito sa States. Let’s just say that he was my childhood sweetheart. I spent most of my early years in the States because all the members of my family are here. So we met again at the right time.”

Oh, after him, you mean?

She laughs self-consciously. “Yes, after everything. Hahahahaha!”

Without admitting anything, Krista is saying between the lines that she and he have called it quits.

“Yes,” she confesses, “it’s over!”

We understand what she’s saying, don’t we?

“You put that as title for your story ha,” she reminds me, still laughing (as she does throughout the interview). “IT’S OVER!”

Has there been some “closure” between her and him?

“Oo naman,” she admits. “Siempre mayroon.”

We proceed to clear some issues.

Did she get pregnant (by him)?

“I was never pregnant. I guess that rumor spread because I left Manila and I’ve been here for a while.”

According to the rumor, she consulted a doctor in Cebu and was found to be “positive.”

“I never went to Cebu. My schedule was quite tight last year. I was promoting a movie, I was promoting Ginebra, I was endorsing some products, I was doing some shows. Before Christmas, I came back to the States and went back to Manila in January and came right back soon after. Nag-show pa nga ako sa Mindanao and I took the plane at the GenSan airport. But I never went to Cebu.”

She says that she’s taking time out from showbiz (“Pahinga muna ako”) and concentrating on the garment business she has put up with her cousin David Tupaz, a designer.

Is it true that the capital for that business came from him?

“No,” she’s adamant, “sariling pera namin ni Kuya David ang pinuhunan namin.”

Doesn’t she miss showbiz?

“I do, pero ngayon ayoko muna mag-showbiz. I’m happy with my life now. It’s stress-free.”

And how would she sum up the turbulent, stormy, roller-coaster year that was 2009?

“I can summarize what happened in two words — time passes.”

And the best lesson that she learned from her experience with him?

“No. 1 — Never stop believing in yourself. Sometimes, even if you know that the public perception of who you are or what you are is wrong, it can get to you; naa-apektuhan ka rin naman…No. 2 — Lahat ng nadadapa ay nakakatayo din naman. You learn to value the important things in life, like your family, your faith, character-development, mga ganoon…No. 3 — Have faith in God.”

Mat arrives to fetch Krista, just when Krista and I are winding up the interview. He has heard nothing.

As he takes a seat beside us, Mat wonders aloud, “What happened?”

“A whole lot happened,” I tell Mat tongue-in-cheek. He gives me a quizzical look.

I guess he knows.

(E-mail reactions at rickylo@philstar.net.ph or at entphilstar@yahoo.com)

CNN – Convicted killer Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed by firing squad early Friday, the Utah Department of Corrections said.

Gardner, 49, is only the third person to die by firing squad in the United States in 33 years.

The 70-year-old Guillermo Udarbe became the first-ever Asian and Filipino mayor of Ridgway early this year.

Udarbe, who is a doctor by profession, said he survived a car accident in 2008. He said it was God’s will that he lived to serve the people of Ridgway, which has a population of about 5,000.

The town is predominantly Caucasian, and has less than 1% Asian population.

Udarbe said he has ideas on how to bring in money to this cash-strapped small town in the northwest region of Pennsylvania. Balitang America

A GMA News’ Flash Report said deputy presidential spokesperson Garry Olivar confirmed that Mrs. Arroyo declared June 30, a Wednesday, a holiday to give way for the inauguration rites of President-elect Benigno Aquino III and Arroyo’s last day in office.

The Palace is set to issue the formal proclamation later Thursday, the report added. — Nikka Corsino/LBG/RSJ, GMANews.TV

The 7.0 magnitude quake was centered 18 miles (29 kilometers) beneath the ocean floor and 125 miles (195 kilometers) off the northern coast of Papua province, the US Geological Survey said on its website. It was accompanied by a series of strong aftershocks, the highest measuring 6.4.

More than 20 houses collapsed in Serui, a town in Yapen district, sparking fires in at least seven places, said police spokesman Lt. Col. Wachjono, who like many Indonesians uses only one name. Two bodies were pulled from beneath the rubble.

“Police and rescuers are still searching for other victims in remote areas,” he said.

Hundreds of people ran out of their homes, said Yan Pieter Yarangga, a resident from the town of Biak. Fearing a tsunami, people fled beaches and some raced for high ground. “I ran too, I was afraid there would be a second quake,” he said.

The tsunami warning was later lifted.

When the electricity was cut, some women and children screamed in terror, said Sgt. Junaidi, a local police official, who also goes by one name. “Many were crying, they were so afraid.”

Earlier in the day, a magnitude-5.3 quake on Sulawesi island, nearly 1,200 miles (2,000 kilometers) to the west, triggered landslides that badly damaged at least 50 homes, killing one person, the official Antara news agency reported. Others were injured, but it was not immediately clear how many.

Indonesia straddles a series of fault lines that make the vast island nation prone to volcanic and seismic activity. A giant quake off the country on Dec. 26, 2004 triggered the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed 230,000 people, half of them in Indonesia’s westernmost province of Aceh.

The quake that hit Wednesday was located more than 2,000 miles (3,000 kilometers) from the country’s capital, Jakarta. — AP

Danilo Cabello, DepEd education program specialist, said the classes in the two elementary schools located on the island are suspended starting June 15 until June 18.

The two schools on the island belong to Balete and Talisay towns.

Cabello also said that next week the students will temporarily attend classes at the mainland’s Central Elementary School to catch up.

He added that the DepEd will instruct the teachers to create programs for make-up classes.

For the past 24 hours, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology recorded 23 volcanic quakes, three of which were felt at Intensity 1 and 2, said resident volcanologist Allan Loza.

The alert status remains at level 2, Loza said.

But the state weather bureau advised jobseekers who will troop to the job fair at the Rizal Park to bring their umbrellas because rains are expected this afternoon.

Robert Sawi, senior weather forecaster of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), said warm and humid weather will prevail over Metro Manila in the morning but rains and thunderstorms are likely in the afternoon or evening.

Sawi also said no tropical cyclone is expected to affect the country in the next several days, although a monsoon trough will bring scattered rains and thunderstorms over extreme northern Luzon this weekend while the rest of the country will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rains and thunderstorms mostly in the afternoon or evening.

DOLE-National Capital Region reported yesterday that 30 local employers and around 20 recruitment agencies will be offering employment opportunities to new graduates and other jobseekers during the whole-day event.

“Of the estimated 30,000 jobs available, 25,000 are vacancies in various countries while the rest are local (jobs),” a labor official said.

Some of the participating companies are engaged in business process outsourcing, information technology and other services.

Employment opportunities
are also available for office personnel, engineers, banking employees and healthcare workers.

Labor officials said interested jobseekers may proceed to the job fair to be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Lagoon Area of Rizal Park.

Similar job fairs will also be held today in several DOLE regional offices.

Last Labor Day, the government offered close to 300,000 local and overseas jobs, but only a few jobseekers turned up for the mega job fair.

DOLE said fewer jobs are being offered today because the government is only undertaking a mini job fair.

Unlike in the past, DOLE also did not initiate any pre-employment activity.

But DOLE said there will be free massage and haircut for jobseekers and other people who will go to Rizal Park to enjoy the Independence Day celebration. – With Helen Flores

The Armed Forces honored her yesterday with a testimonial parade that included units of the Presidential Security Group. Highlighting the event was a demonstration of the Army’s skydiving team.

“And so, today, I thank you for your farewell. It has been a great honor to have been your commander-in-chief, especially during this period of defense reform,” Mrs. Arroyo said in her message after reviewing the troops in formation, escorted by Armed Forces chief Gen. Delfin Bangit.

“As I fade away as old soldiers and old commanders-in-chief do, soldiers of the Filipino people, I enjoin you to carry on. Be the soldiers of the Constitution that you have been all these nine years. Thank you very, very much to all of you,” she said.

She cited the role of the Armed Forces in keeping the nation stable and intact amid efforts by some groups in the military to overthrow her.

“I thank the Armed Forces of the Philippines for this testimonial review. But more than that, for the last nine years, when you gave me the best – the best of your efforts, the best of your skills, the best of your sacrifices, the best of your passion to serve the flag and the constitutional authority,” she said.

The farewell came amid tension between Bangit and incoming commander-in-chief Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, who has announced his decision to name a new AFP chief.

There was no clear signal yet from Bangit, who worked as Mrs. Arroyo’s aide since she was vice president, if he would be resigning or retiring.

Mrs. Arroyo said the Armed Forces has become professional and modernized.

She said the military has also been instrumental in helping the country achieve 37 consecutive quarters of economic growth.

“The Armed Forces has come a long way since January 2001 when I first became your commander-in-chief, but so has the Philippines itself come a long way since 2001,” she said.

“Time has gratefully erased memories of that moment less than 10 years ago when the nation teetered on political chaos and financial bankruptcy,” the President said.

“From the first chief of staff in my term to the present chief of staff, each has left his mark to make the organization stronger and more professional,” she said.

“I’ve seen in each chief of staff with his own style in leadership a progressive advancement toward the transformation of the Armed Forces, from a fractionalized organization whose members have varying degrees of politicization to a truly professional course whose loyalty is defined solely by duty to the people and the Constitution,” she said.

Mrs. Arroyo said it was also during her term that the modernization of the military, increase in the benefits for soldiers, and defense reforms began.

She also said the military has played a significant role in making the country’s first automated elections generally peaceful.

Better pay

She said an ordinary soldier now receives nearly double what he or she used to receive in 2009. Soldiers, she said, now receive bigger hazard pay and subsistence allowance.

She added that because of the salary standardization law that she enacted last year, soldiers would get another round of increase starting July 1 this year.

She said the annual pay increases for military personnel will continue until 2012.

She said she has also ensured that more and more soldiers’ families are able to own homes. Widows and orphans are entitled to scholarships and trainings.

“At the very center of defense reforms is the great Filipino soldier. I see the human being and even the fiercest of our soldiers. I have seen the soldier on the front line prepared to offer his or her life in war or sacrificing to uplift people in times of need, even as he or she himself or herself also struggles to make ends meet especially, for instance, a 40-year-old soldier who cares for his family of five and deserves more dignity,” Mrs. Arroyo said.

“I know of the lonely days and fortitude of our soldiers in the field, in the battlefield, who send humble pay to the families as source of love and hope. Within the nine years of my presidency therefore, we have increased the basic pay of our soldiers five times,” she said.

Grateful Bangit

Bangit, in his speech, said Mrs. Arroyo may be the most maligned president the country has ever had, but she is also the best.

“She gave the AFP the support that it needed – additional personnel, salary increase, modernization fund for our Armed Forces, and even supported our stand that insurgency can be defeated not by arms alone, but by winning the hearts and minds of our people,” Bangit said.

“She may have been the most criticized president. But opinion from people who do not know you, who do not know how you work and what your visions are, is understandable. And so we give them the right to express their opinions,” Bangit said.

He praised the President for inspiring the AFP to achieve more for peace and development.

“I have worked with the President even when she was still vice president. I had the opportunity of observing her in good times and in bad, in the high pitch and in the low pitch of her voice. I have personally seen how she decided in matters dealing with the Armed Forces. And I can personally attest to her concern for the soldiers,” Bangit said.

“She was the commander-in-chief who insisted on visiting our soldiers amid too many concerns, forgetting that she, too, is a human who gets tired and needed sleep,” he said.

Bangit said Mrs. Arroyo wanted to get things done as quickly as possible because she didn’t want the soldiers to wait.

He also said the President acknowledges the soldiers’ sacrifices, treats them honorably, and respects her troops’ opinions on how they intend to get things done.

“It is probably no secret that she is strict and would always demand the best in you. I have received her ire for more times than I could count,” he said.

“But at the end of it all, a leader sees what we do not see in our shortsightedness. Later on, we realize the wisdom of the decision. And we learn. I hope you also have the opportunity to learn the same from your superiors,” he said.

He also said he learned from Mrs. Arroyo how to be friendly without stooping down or lowering his standards.

“In the midst of the scandals hounding her administration, while militants were burning her effigy on the streets, she was working. That’s where you see the level of dedication,” he said.

“I must admit I understand her now more than ever,” Bangit said.

He also said he is not worried at all by the impending loss of his position as military chief. He also said he doesn’t think Mrs. Arroyo is worried about the end of her term.

“To cease to enjoy the honor that used to be accorded to you, I have no such worry. We give our best contribution wherever we are. Finished or unfinished, we go when we must,” Bangit said.

He also called on the next administration to continue what has already been started by the Arroyo administration.

“Those who would inherit this administration would have their own time to continue what was started. As professional soldiers, you will and you should obey them. But until they have exceeded the concern, the respect, and the support that President Arroyo has accorded the AFP, they would not be able to erase her contributions,” Bangit said.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo came here yesterday to inaugurate the subway that cost the national government P1.2 billion using funds acquired through a loan from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).

Present during the inauguration and soft opening of the tunnel were Arroyo, Cebu City Mayor-elect Mike Rama, Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Makoto Katsura and officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Kajima Corporation.

The activity was marked by the unveiling of the marker located right at the entrance of the tunnel going to the South Road Properties.

Prior to this, Arroyo was able to inspect the whole stretch of the 610-meter twin box tunnel, which is already complete structure-wise.

However, there are minor, but vital details such as the lighting system, the pumping system and the control center that still need to be finished for the tunnel to be completely passable for all types of vehicles.

For the mean time, it will be open starting June 14, from Mondays to Fridays at certain time schedules when traffic in the South is expected to be worse.

It will be open during hours when students and workers will be on their way to schools and offices that is 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and during hours when students and most workers go home from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The tunnel will be closed on weekends until such time everything has been completed.

By August, the tunnel shall be open all day to all types of vehicles.

Arroyo congratulated the city government which conceptualized the project and also the Japanese government which provided the funding.

She also thanked the construction workers, in fact, interviewed one of them.

Rico Pocolan, one of the construction workers who worked for the completion of the tunnel since it started on August 2008, said that the project has benefited his family through the job it has given and also through the convenience in traffic flow that it shall later provide.

Another beneficiary of the project, Dino Carale, a delivery man of an agriculture products supplier, told Arroyo that the subway made easy and faster their delivery of farm products to their clients.

Arroyo, during her speech, said that the subway would hopefully bring economic progress to the city as it is set to reduce traffic in the central business district by over 40 percent.

Katsura meanwhile promised to support the Philippine government and its future endeavors in terms of infrastructure development.

He reiterated Japan’s commitment to assist the Philippines in its nation building effort.

The 3B-2 subway or the tunnel section of the CSCRP stretches 0.97 kilometers long consisting of the 610-meter twin box tunnel and the 360-meter reinforced concrete retaining structure.

The tunnel consists of four lanes — two in both directions — with an automatic pumping and lighting system and complete with safety features.

It connects the viaduct before the South Road Properties (SRP) to Sergio Osmeña Blvd. and lies underneath the Plaza Independencia.

It is the first kind in the whole country and will be maintained by the DPWH-7 after the one year warranty period where Kajima Corp will stay and will be assisting in the operations of the tunnel while training DPWH personnel who will take over the tunnel maintenance and management.

Dismayed

Many students and teachers from different public schools in Cebu City were dismayed after President Arroyo cancelled her scheduled visit to the Zapatera Elementary School yesterday afternoon.

Some 30 students even did not eat their lunch on time because they were so busy practicing their cultural presentation for the president.

“Nagkapoy-kapoy lang mi sa among pag-practice. Wala pa man mi’y klase gipaari g’yud mi aron mopresent og sayaw sa Presidente,” said one of the students.

Arroyo was supposed to inspect the construction of a P13.2 million four-storey 16-classroom building at the Zapatera Elementary School that is funded by the Cebu City government through the Special Education fund.

Speaking on behalf of President Arroyo, DepEd Secretary Mona Valisno thanked the Cebu City officials for their big help by providing the funds for the construction of the school building.

Education consultant and Vice Mayor-elect Joy Augustus Young said the construction of the building started last January and is scheduled to be completed on July because it is already 60 percent done. — with Rene U. Borromeo/NLQ (THE FREEMAN)