The First Typhoon of the Wet Season in the Philippines

As the summer season ended, the wet seasons of the Philippines had officially begun, particularly now that a typhoon is steadily battering Luzon and Visayas with heavy rains. “Butchoy”, with international name Guchol, is said to have intensified into a typhoon as it moved in a north-northwest direction.

Despite not making any landfall, Tropical Storm “Butchoy” moves up stronger and expected to bring more rains to Luzon and Eastern Visayas, particularly in the Sarangani and Samar Provinces which is currently experiencing severe flooding.

First Typhoon of the Wet Season Butchoy was first seen 470 kilometers east northeast of Borongan, Eastern Samar, with maximum winds of 120 kilometers per hour near the center, and gustiness of up to 150 kph, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said in its latest advisory.

According to latest Philippines Weather news, Butchoy is forecast to be 590 kilometers east southeast of Casiguran, Aurora by Sunday morning. Typhoon Butchoy continued to move north-northwest 15 kilometers per hour, with estimated rainfall of 15-25-mm per hour (heavy) within the 500-km diameter of the typhoon, it also said.

It is expected to enhance the southwest monsoon that will bring rains over Luzon and Visayas especially over the western section which may trigger flashfloods and landslides, Pagasa said.

Rescued Teachers in Samar According to latest Weather Philippines news, eight public school teachers were rescued by the Philippine Coast Guard Friday night after the engine of their boat conked out under heavy rain in rough seas churned up by Tropical Storm Butchoy.

Meanwhile, about 60 passengers bound for Luzon have been stranded at the port in Allen town, Northern Samar, since Friday afternoon after vessels were barred from sailing because of the storm, which had intensified into a typhoon on Saturday.

Bicol Bracing for Flooding and Landslides Disaster agencies went on alert to better deal with the possibility of floods and landslides as Typhoon Butchoy came closer to the Bicol region although the weather bureau did not expect it to make landfall anywhere in the Philippines.

Butchoy, the second storm to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility this year, has enhanced the southwest monsoon which in turn has been dumping heavy rain on many parts of the Philippine the past week as the weather system intensified from a low pressure area into a typhoon.

The Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) was placed under “Code Blue” alert or preparedness status, and relief teams were assembled for quick deployment in case people living in areas prone to flooding, lahar flows or landslides need to be evacuated, said Bernardo Alejandro, regional director of the Office of Civil Defense and chairman of the regional disaster council

PBA Governors Cup - The Latests

PBA’s Governor’s Cup had started to heat things up when Alaska had won against one of PBA’s giant, the Barako Bulls, while De Ocampo had stepped up for B-Meg to hold off Barangay Ginebra charges.
Alaska vs. Barako Bulls Import Jason Forte led a balanced attack by Alaska as it pummeled Barako Bull, 104-84, Sunday night in the 2012 PBA Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.

According to latest PBA News, Forte racked up 15 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter where the Aces put the game out of reach. “It was nice to see activity from us defensively and that set the tone for us,” commended new Alaska head coach Luigi Trillo. “We played aggressive basketball right from the first quarter,” Trillo said.

LA Tenorio controlled the tempo in his pace en route to 21 points, six rebounds and six assists while newly acquired forward Gabby Espinas had 18 points and seven rebounds apart from his decent defending against Jamine Peterson.

Peterson, the Energy’s skilled reinforcement, still managed to get 19 points but shot six-for-19. Cyrus Baguio chipped in with 14 points and seven rebounds as the Aces, now at 1-1, out-rebounded the Energy, 58-40.

De Ocampo’s Stand Yancy de Ocampo stepped up in the absence of Marc Pingris and Joe Devance as B-Meg held off Barangay Ginebra, 96-88, Sunday night in the 2012 PBA Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
De Ocampo wound up with 16 points and eight rebounds in 25 minutes to help the Llamados chalk up their first win in two games. “Yancy was really the key. They didn’t really have anybody to stop Yancy inside and we kept dumping the ball into him, we made an effort to do that and he really responded,” praised B-Meg head coach Tim Cone.

According to PBA Latest News, the Llamados threatened to pull away several times and even led by as much as 16 (49-33), but just couldn’t against a resilient Gin Kings squad. “They lived up to their reputation as a never-say-die team. They just kept coming back. We had a good shooting night and they didn’t have a good shooting night and that was one of the big differences in the game,” said Cone.

Ginebra moved to within, 77-80, after a Cedric Bozeman triple but B-Meg countered with a 9-1 run capped by a PJ Simon three-point play that extended the gap, 89-78, with 4:05 left. Simon, though, injured his knee after that basket as he got fouled by Kerby Raymundo and did not return. He finished with a team-high 21 points on a remarkable nine-of-11 shooting from the field.

“PJ had a great game. I hope he’s healthy. I don’t know but he strained his knee. I don’t know the severity of it but I hope it’s not too bad,” a concerned Cone said.

James Yap pumped in 18 points, including timely threes that kept Ginebra at bay while import Marcus Blakely had 13 points, 17 rebounds and five assists to offset his horrible three-of-15 shooting at the line.

PBA Governor Cup Latest Updates

As the PBA Governor’s Cup continuously rages on, a number of teams had started to come up from the competition, B-Meg Llamados with their second straight win with Barako Bulls, and Powerade Tigers with their first win of the competition.

 

B-Meg’s Second Straight Win B-MEG booked a second straight victory after repulsing Barako Bull, 95-90, on a night when Powerade finally won a game in the PBA Governors’ Cup eliminations at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Marcus Blakely scored 29 points, had 15 rebounds, five assists, four steals and two blocks despite an aching back and carried the Llamados to a 2-1 record after the Tigers ripped Alaska, 114-97.

According to latest PBA News, Marc Pingris returned after a two-game absence to shoot 11 and grab the same number of boards, while Willie Miller couldn’t save the Energy from losing a second straight game and dropping to 1-2 despite shooting 29.

Powerade’s Comeback After Powerade’s continuous winless efforts in the PBA Governor’s Cup, the Tigers had finally won their first victory over Alaska with the help of their new import, Omar Sneed.

Sneed, a 34-year-old journeyman who has seen extensive action in Belgium, Venezuela and the Netherlands, replaces the celebrated, but disappointing, Rashad McCants when the Tigers clash with the Aces in the 5:15 p.m. contest set at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.

McCants averaged 25 points in his two games with the Tigers, but the talent and skill that took him to stints with Minnesota and Sacramento in the NBA have clearly deserted him, forcing Powerade officials to look for a replacement.

With their win, Powerade is set to challenge Talk N’ Text, in which both teams are in the bottom half of the standings. According to PBA Latest News, the Texters will come into the match with a three-day rest while the Tigers will be playing a second game in three nights with Gary David, the tournament’s best local scorer, expected to be the focus of the Talk ‘N Text defense.

After shooting 31 points in a 114-97 rout of Alaska on Friday, David is the logical man to stop for the Texters if they wish to score a follow up of a masterful conquest of defending champion Petron Blaze.

Project Noah

Noah, a program to install rain gauges and flood monitoring and warning systems in the country’s major river systems, had been recently installed as one of the government’s first step in the coming season. A joint effort by the Philippine government and the local sector, Noah is said to be a vital tool in the coming rainy season.

Project Noah In a speech read for him at the 1st Philippine International River Summit on Thursday, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, said the PLDT Group’s Smart Communications and Sun Cellular will help the government’s P1.7-billion project to make communities resilient to typhoons.

According to latest Philippines Weather news, government officials and private sector participants told the summit that the Philippines, which suffer average 20 storms a year, badly needed to manage river systems and install a better alert system for floods to prevent the loss of lives and property.

As part of its assistance, the PLDT Group has allowed the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) to install automatic rain gauges (ARGs) in 600 cell sites of Smart and Sun all over the country over two years, said Pangilinan. PLDT installed 63 rain gauges for the country’s weather bureau last year.
Like the biblical patriarch for which it was named, Project Noah will warn communities of impending flooding in their communities in the event of continuous rains.

“Project Noah combined with other new technologies like the Doppler radar, will finally bring the country’s disaster preparedness systems into the 21st century. Even before floods strike, we can know to an unprecedented level of detail how such calamities will impact on our cities and towns,” Pangilinan said in the speech read for him by Michael Toledo, Philex Mining Corp. vice president for corporate affairs.

A Rainy Start of the School Year According to latest Technology Philippines news, while the wet season hasn’t officially kicked in yet, monsoon rains are expected to affect the opening of classes next week.

Southern Luzon, the Visayas and western and northeastern Mindanao would start experiencing isolated to widespread rain showers this weekend, said forecaster Nikos Peñaranda of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).

“We should watch out for these possible monsoon rains. Next week will be critical. It’s likely that we’ll be experiencing monsoon rains as well by next week because of the enhancement of the southwest monsoon,’’ Peñaranda said in an interview.

Aquino won’t sign waiver

President Benigno Aquino III is not waiving his right under the laws to keep his bank accounts confidential even after Renato Corona’s removal as Chief Justice for untruthful declaration of wealth.
Speaking at a news conference in Malacañang Thursday, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte confirmed that Mr. Aquino declared during the presidential campaign in 2010 that he would waive his privilege of secrecy under the country’s banking laws if elected President.
Valte said, however, that Mr. Aquino wouldn’t sign any such waiver at this time.
“Let’s go back to the context,” Valte said. “It was the accused [Corona] who issued the challenge to every Tom, Dick and Harry who was willing to take on his dare. Is it fair to put the President, who has not been accused of graft, who has not been accused of dishonesty, in the same category as the man who was just removed from his post?”
Valte was answering questions raised by Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano’s call for a new standard in his explanation for his vote to convict Corona on Tuesday.
Corona submitted a waiver to the Senate impeachment court on May 25—too late and useless, as he had already admitted keeping $2.4 million and P80 million in bank accounts that he did not report in his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN).
“I ask the President to instruct his Cabinet to sign the waivers or resign and leave the government,” Cayetano said. “Lead by following, or get out of the way.”
Cayetano proposed waivers for all executive officials, members of Congress and the judiciary.
Not accused
But Valte insisted that the President was not issuing a waiver.
“You have to remember that this all came about because one man was on the stand, was being accused of something,” Valte said. “Do we put other people in the same situation even when they are not being accused of hiding anything?”
The President and the members of his Cabinet have all declared their assets, Valte said. Their SALNs have been available to the public since they were sworn into office, she said.
No dollar accounts
Valte added that President Aquino had no foreign-currency bank account.
“No one is saying that his disclosures in his SALN are incomplete or are inaccurate and the same goes for members of his Cabinet,” Valte said. “Just like Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said [Corona’s] waiver was for theatrics,” she added.
The SALN, Valte said, contains a waiver that authorizes the Ombudsman to look into the officials’ finances with help from all governmental agencies.
And there’s the bank secrecy law, which, Valte said,  provides for exceptions and these could trigger the opening of public officials’ bank accounts.
‘Lead by example’
But Cayetano said President Aquino should “lead by example,” though he was willing to give Mr. Aquino time until a system that would prevent abuse could be introduced.
In a text message to the Philippine Daily Inquirer Thursday, Cayetano acknowledged “concerns” that Mr. Aquino and other government officials might have if they followed Corona’s lead.
Cayetano called for a system that would not use waivers other than to weed out corrupt officials and employees.
“I am in favor of giving him time to sign and put these things in place,” Cayetano said.
“His presidency and programs are worth supporting so I encourage him to find ways to address (the) concerns then sign (his own waiver) and get his Cabinet to sign waivers,” Cayetano said.
Cayetano was glad about the Supreme Court’s decision to release the SALNs of all its justices.
Lesson in honesty
Speaking at a news forum Thursday, Cayetano said Corona’s impeachment should serve as a lesson in honesty and transparency in public service.
In the case of the executive branch, he said, the President could order all officials and employees to submit waivers.
“The President can say, ‘If you don’t want to sign, resign,’” Cayetano said.
Cayetano acknowledged that waivers could be used against public officials, especially with midterm elections to be held next year.
He said the waiver could also be used to producing  “fake” bank accounts to accuse officials of corruption.
But he considered the waiver a “new paradigm” in transparency and accountability, and he observed that more public officials are following Corona’s example.
Others follow
Several members of the House of Representatives have signed waivers, and the leader of the Catholic charismatic group El Shaddai, Mike Velarde, is calling on other government officials to follow suit.
“If they are not hiding anything [they should sign]. Besides, the purpose of this SALN is for the public to know what they have,” Velarde told reporters during the 6th National Catholic Charismatic Congress in Pasay City Thursday.

Credits : Local News in the Philippines

Rainy school opening seen

While the wet season hasn’t officially kicked in yet, monsoon rains are expected to affect the opening of classes next week.
Monsoon rains induced by an active low pressure area (LPA) east off Samar would become more frequent over southern Luzon, including Metro Manila and the Visayas next week, weather forecasters said Thursday.
Southern Luzon, the Visayas and western and northeastern Mindanao would start experiencing isolated to widespread rain showers this weekend, said forecaster Nikos Peñaranda of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).
“We should watch out for these possible monsoon rains. Next week will be critical. It’s likely that we’ll be experiencing monsoon rains as well by next week because of the enhancement of the southwest monsoon,’’ Peñaranda said in an interview.
As of 8 a.m. Thursday, the LPA was over the Philippine Sea 330 kilometers east of Borongan, Eastern Samar.
While far from the archipelago, the LPA would induce the southwest monsoon, or winds blowing southwest, to bring rain over some sections as early as Friday, Peñaranda said.
The LPA would likely develop into a tropical depression Saturday, and when it does, the monsoon rain would intensify, he said. Once a tropical depression, it will be called “Ambo.’’

Credits : Philippines Weather, Weather Philippines

In The Know: Selecting the next Chief Justice

Section 7, Article VIII, of the Constitution requires that a Supreme Court justice be a natural-born Filipino, at least 40 years old and must have been a judge of a lower court or engaged in the practice of law in the country for at least 15 years.
The Constitution also requires that a member of the judiciary “must be a person of proven competence, integrity, probity and independence.”
The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) has the primary function of recommending appointees to the judiciary, as required under Section 8, Article VIII, of the Constitution.
The JBC is composed of the Chief Justice as ex officio chairman, the secretary of justice, and a representative of the Congress as ex officio members, a representative of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, a professor of law, a retired justice of the Supreme Court and a representative of the private sector.
In fulfillment of its function, the JBC submits to the President a list of at least three nominees for every vacancy in the judiciary. From this list, the President makes his choice.
A vacancy on the Supreme Court must be filled within 90 days from its occurrence.
The selection process for nominees for judicial offices, including that of Chief Justice, is specific:
The JBC first announces the vacancy, and an active, nationwide search for candidates follows. Applications and recommendations are submitted to the JBC secretariat.
The applicants are evaluated based on their qualifications and background. They also undergo physical and psychological examinations.
A notice about the candidates is published by the JBC secretary in two newspapers. The notice informs the public that any complaint against a candidate may be filed with the secretary within 10 days.
The candidates concerned have five days from receipt of the complaints to file their comments.
Those who pass the initial screening are interviewed by the JBC.
The council subsequently meets for the final deliberation to choose the  candidates to be recommended to the President.
To be considered a nominee, a candidate must obtain the affirmative votes of the majority of the JBC members. On the question of integrity, a candidate is automatically disqualified on the negative vote of even just one JBC member.

Credits : Current Events in Philippines