KAKAMMPI News

All-Filipina group 4TH Impact (formerly 4TH Power) and Filipino-British singer Seann Miley Moore were among the Final 12 acts who have made it through to the LIVE shows of "The X Factor UK." For Sunday's show,  4TH Impact flew to Rome for the Judges’ Houses round where they gave a powerful performance of Rihanna’s hit “Love The Way You Lie.”   So impressed was Judge Cheryl Fernandez-Versini to their peformance that she told guest mentor Jess Glynne, “Wow! I was choked, I got goosebumps, I feel weird.” 4TH Impact is made up of sisters, Mylene, Celina, Irene and Almira Cercado aged 19-27.   Meanwhile, Filipino-British Seann Miley Moore in the Boys category also made it through to the LIVE shows after being selected by judge Nick Grimshaw.   For this round held in Cotswolds, Seann chose “This Woman’s Work” by Kate Bush, saying he was thinking about his mother for this performance. “You did your mom proud.  That was amazing,” said Nick. The other groups who moved fo...

The main office and other processing centers of the Philippines Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) in Metro Manila will be open on November 17 to 20, which have been declared non-working days for government offices in the National Capital Region in line with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Meeting, which will be held in Manila on November 18 to 19. However, according to POEA Advisory No. 33-2015, the offices open on the said days will only be processing limited transactions, such as overseas employment certificates (OECs) or exit clearances of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). “The main POEA office in Ortigas and other processing centers in Metro Manila (Duty Free Paranaque, SM Manila, Trinoma) will be open on November 17 to 20 but only for the processing of OEC of Balik-Manggagawa and New Hires,” it said. Due to the limited capacity of the offices to entertain concerns, the POEA advises the OFWs and the general public to visit their offices before the ...

Malacañang on Saturday announced new nominations for the various Philippine overseas posts. In an interview over state-run dzRB radio, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said, "We have a few announcements on appointments. Worthy of mention now is that we have four nominations for ambassadors."   Those nominated include: Minda Calaguian-Cruz, nominated as Philippine ambassador to the Commonwealth of Australia; Noel Eugene Eusebio M. Servigon to Vietnam; Jesus S. Domingo to New Zealand; and Eduardo Jose A. de Vega to the United Mexican States. "So, congratulations to our four newly-nominated ambassadors," Valte said.  — LBG, GMA News  

Dumagsa noong Biyernes sa Philippine Consulate General  sa Jeddah ang maraming OFWs upang samantalahin ang huling linggo sa pagpaparehistro para sa overseas absentee voting (OAV), upang makasali sila sa national election sa 2016. Umabot hanggang sa labas ng hallway ng konsulado ang pila ng mga magpaparehistro. Sinabi ng konsulado sa GMA News na dahil sa dami ng mga dumagsang OFWs, agad umanong nagpasya ang Philippine foreign office na i-extend hanggang sa hapon ang registration period. OAV refistration in Jeddah. --Ronaldo Concha Ayon kay Vice Consul RJ Sumague, mahigit tatlong daan na ang mga dumating para magparehistro sa huling linggo ng OAV registration. Inaasahan din umano ng konsulado na marami pa ang darating sa mga huling araw ng pagpapalista hanggang sa October 31. Sinabi ni Sumague na apat na voter registration machines ang nakatalaga sa konsulado para magamit sa OAV registration, pero tatlo lang umano ang kanilang ginagamit sa loob ng konsulado dahil sa ang isa ay ginaga...

The United States government has put a new limit of 12,999 foreign workers, including those from the Philippines, in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) for fiscal year 2016 under the transitional worker program. The announcement comes barely four years before the end of the so-called transitional Commonwealth-only worker-1 (or CW-1) program in 2019. Under the CW-1 program, employers in the CNMI can apply for temporary permission to employ foreign nationals who are ineligible for any existing employment-based non-immigrant category under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Currently, most non-immigrant workers in the CNMI under the CW program are from the Philippines.  The CNMI is a US territory in the Western Pacific, some three hours away from Manila by plane. After 2019, only those foreign workers who are eligible for H visas and any job-based non-immigrant category under the INA will be allowed to continue working in the CNMI. The new limit on the num...

The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) on Friday announced that 332 out of 447 passed the Architect Licensure Examination given in the Middle East last month. [ Click here for list of passers. ] The PRC said the examination was held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Al-Khobar, Jeddah and Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Doha, Qatar; and in Kuwait.  —KBK, GMA News  

The Philippines has recently signed a bilateral social security agreement with Sweden designed to benefit citizens of both countries in terms of securing their respective long-term and pension benefits. The agreement was signed by Philippine Social Security System president and CEO Emilio S. de Quiros, Jr. and Swedish Minister for Social Security Annika Strandhäll last October 15 in Stockholm. The agreement is expected to guarantee equal treatment of nationals in accessing applicable benefits; the portability of benefits when nationals of one Party reside in the other Party; the totalization of insurance periods, and the exchange of information and mutual assistance between the competent authorities. To share the good news, De Quiros, together with Philippine non-resident Ambassador to Sweden Bayani Mercado, met with the Filipino community in Sweden the following day and informed them of the benefits of the agreement. A news release from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said De ...