Peace agreement signed

The Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) with Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) was signed Thursday at Malacañang.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak witnessed the signing ceremonies. Also in attendance were United Nations Development Program (UNDP) administrator Helen Clark, Saudi Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah, Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Naci Koru of Turkey, State Minister Maria Bohmer of Germany, Director Salem Ali Othman of Libya, Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman; and other members of the diplomatic corps, congressional leaders, the Mindanao bloc in the House of Representatives, and members of the international contact group and the international monitoring team for the peace talks.

The peace agreement is implemented with the passage of a Bangsamoro Basic Law by Congress. Opinion in the House of Representatives is divided.

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said the Basic Law will be passed by the end of the year. It will then be submitted to the people in a plebiscite.

Another NPA attack

Technical Sergeant Godofredo Baladad was killed, while the other four wounded soldiers were identified as T/Sgt. Dante Ramos Buenvenida, Pfc William Umayam Hatcheles, and militiamen Antonio Mabras and Richard Bernales in an ambush by New People’s Army (NPA) in Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur.

This is the latest in a series of NPA ambushes in Lopez, Quezon; Las Navas, Northern Samar; Calbiga, Samar; and Surigao del Sur. The NPAs mounted their ambushes after the arrest of Benito and Wilma Tiamzon, top leaders of the Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA.

More retaliatory attacks by the NPA are expected.

Malacañang denied

Secretary Edwin Lacierda downplayed Department of Transportation and Communication Secretary (DOTC) Joseph Emilio Abaya’s announcement that Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Mar Roxas will be the Liberal Party’s (LP) official candidate for president in 2016.  Lacierda said the public should wait for President Aquino’s endorsement, who said he will announce it at the proper time.

LP member, Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone, said the party’s nomination was for Roxas’ taking. No other LP leader has indicated an interest in the presidency.

Roxas’ performance at the Zamboanga City siege, at the Yolanda relief rehabilitation program, and the worsening crime situation has been questioned by several quarters.

Senate President Frank Drilon has said earlier last year that Mar Roxas is the LP bet for president, adding that is carved in stone. Several surveys have shown Vice-President Binay ahead of Roxas by a 3 to  1 margin.

CHED: No change

The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has decided against changing the opening of classes from June to August, for colleges and universities.

Earlier, Department of Education (DOE) also decided to stick to the present June to March calendar, for elementary and high school classes.

Objections have been raised in holding classes during the hot summer months of April and May. 

CHED Chairperson Patricia Licuanan said that universities and colleges should work on improving the quality of their programs and students instead.

University of the Philippines (UP), Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU), and the University of Santo Tomas (UST) have already decided to move their start of classes to August. 

House rejection

The House of Representatives will not allow the lifting of the secrecy of bank deposits, Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said Wednesday. Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commisioner Kim Henares had proposed the lifting.

Belmonte said the lifting of secrecy of bank deposits will result in capital flight and loss of confidence in the banking system.

Deputy Speaker Giorgidi Aggabao, Marikina Rep. Romero Quimbo, Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan, and Rep. Magtanggol Gunigundo supported Belmonte’s opposition to the lifting.

Customs infighting

Customs Deputy Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno admitted he is a friend of suspected smuggler Davidson Bangayan alias David Tan.

Nepomuceno has been accused of being behind the demolition job against Deputy Commissioner Jessie Dellosa.

Customs insiders say there is an ongoing infighting between Dellosa’s intelligence groups and Nepomuceno’s enforcement group.

Malacañang said they are looking into the reports and asked Commissioner John Sevilla to submit his findings.

Reduce income tax

Valenzuela Representative Magtanggol Gunigundo has filed a bill to reduce corporate income tax (CIT) rates from 30% to 20%, and individual income tax rates from 32% to 16%.

This is a good bill as foreign investors are given lower CIT rates in neighboring Asean countries, one reason why the Philippines has the least foreign investments among the top 6 Asean countries.

Landslide casualties

Twenty-four people are dead and 90 are reportedly missing in a mudslide in Oso, Washington. This shows that landslides do happen not only in the Philippines, but in other countries as well.

The United States mainland has also been hit by a series of hurricanes (severe tropical storms).

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Tidbits: Some 300,000 nurses are unemployed. Another 30,000 new graduates are added this year. The government should hire at least 30,000 more nurses to be deployed in every barangay.

Former beauty queen and now councilor, Dianne Cervantes of Hagonoy, Bulacan was shot and seriously wounded.

Epher Victorio, a manager of assembly plant Atlantic Gulf and Pacific Company (AG&P), was shot dead by motorcycle-riding gunmen in Batangas.

Atty. Pedro Clinton Laudencia was shot dead by an unidentified man on a motorcycle in Sta. Ana, Manila.

Lawyer Levito Baligod said the malversation at Nabcor is still going on. He is presenting 4 Nabcor employees to testify on the irregularity.

Standard & Poor’s rating agency projects gross domestic product (GDP) growth of the Philippines for 2014 at 6.6 percent.

The number of fires is increasing. From January to March, 1,432 fires have occurred.

Barangay Chairman Pedro Ramirez of Barangay 183, Caloocan was shot dead by 2 men riding-in-tandem.

Onofre Almojuela, a 70-year-old councilor in Bacnotan, La Union was killed in an ambush.