KAKAMMPI News

Passengers arriving or leaving through the Ninoy Aquino International Airport may have to think twice before bringing the khat plant, as a United Kingdom ban on it is now in effect. In a post on its social media accounts, the Manila International Airport Authority said the British Embassy had stressed the ban became effective last Tuesday. The  MIAA posted on its Facebook page  last Monday a June 18 memo ordering the dissemination of the advisory for the information of the riding public. It also posted a copy of a June 13 letter from the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office to the MIAA, informing it of the ban that will take effect 7 a.m. PHL time. "From that time,  UK law enforcement will have the power to seize and destroy  all forms of khat (fresh, dried, frozen or otherwise processed) or products containing khat and will likely prosecute individuals and businesses or others breaking this law. Criminal penalties of up to 14 years imprisonment and an unlimited fine w...

Filipinos who borrow money in the United Arab Emirates may have to think several times over before they issue blank checks as a guarantee of payment. Dubai police said such a practice is one of the major reasons people are jailed, according to a report on UAE-based news site Gulf News. “We want to change people’s and companies’ mentality about checks. Checks should be used to fulfill monetary transactions and not as a guarantee that a certain amount will be paid,” it quoted Col. Abdullah Khadim Surour,  Director of Al Barsha Police Station , as saying. People caught and jailed for bounced checks can regain their freedom only after they repay their debts, the Gulf News report said. Brig. Mohammad Nasser Al Razouqi, deputy director of the Department of Criminal Investigation (CID), said police first try to contact the person who issued the check after receiving a complaint and give them a month's grace period to settle their debt. “If they refuse or they cannot, then the case goes to...

Amid recent violent incidents in Yemen, the Crisis Alert Level there remains at "2," the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) said over the weekend. "In view of the current political and security situation in Yemen, the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh stresses to all Filipinos in Yemen that Yemen remains to be under Alert Level 2 (Restriction Phase). All Filipinos are therefore advised to restrict non-essential movements and avoid public places," it said in a  June 27 advisory . It said that under Crisis Alert Level 2, Filipinos with existing labor contracts may return to Yemen but the deployment of newly-hired overseas Filipino workers will remain suspended. Meanwhile, the embassy urged Filipinos in Yemen to update their registration with the embassy. It also said they can contact the Philippine Consulate in Sana’a via honorary consul Mohammed Saleh Al Jamal, and via these contact details: Telephone: +967 1 416751 Fax: +967 1 418254 Mobile: +967 777 2 555 1...

Thirty-two Overseas Filipino Workers were expected to return from Libya on Saturday afternoon, a "News TV Live" report said. According to the report, the 32 workers of the Tripoli Carpet Factory were sent home, with their employer covering their repatriation. Officials of the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration will meet the returning OFWs at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, the report said. According to the report, 270 OFWs have come home from Libya, where the DFA has raised Crisis Level 3 due to security concerns. Under Crisis Level 3, repatriation is still on a voluntary basis.  — JDS, GMA News

For the past 2 years I’ve had the honour and luxury of having a wonderful Filipino maid. I won’t say her name her but let's call her Geraldine. Geraldine first started working with my wife and I two years ago. I remember her first few days with us. She was very shy and quiet. Sometimes I couldn’t help but feel that she might even be afraid of us but I guess having to live for the first time under a stranger’s roof far far away from home can make anyone scared. In the first few weeks I often found her in her room looking out the window. When she looked at me I could see the tears in her eyes that would immediately prompt me to ask her what’s wrong. But she always just brushed it off and said nothing. We thought that perhaps to add to the anxiety of being away from home alone, she probably missed her family too. So my wife and I arranged for her to call home as often as we could. She would give me a phone number with a +63 prefix on it written on a small torn piece of paper with pen....

Non-Muslim foreigners in Saudi Arabia should not drink, eat, or smoke in public during Ramadan, if they wish to remain in the country. Violators could face deportation or risk losing their jobs, the International Business Times (IBT) reported Thursday, quoting  Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry orders . "They are not excused for being non-Muslim... anyone living in this country should follow the laws of the Kingdom, including respecting religious sentiments," the IBT report added. Companies were instructed to relay these instructions to their employees to ensure complete compliance. Ramadan, Islam's holy month of fasting, will begin on Sunday in Saudi Arabia, the state-run  Al-Ekhbariya television  reported on Friday. Other Gulf monarchies, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates also said Ramadan will start in their countries on Sunday. Algeria will also mark the start of the holy month on the same day. Yemen's religious authorities said in a...

Filipinos in Singapore marked Philippine Independence Day with a dragon boat rowing competition at the Kallang River there last June 22, the Philippine embassy there said Tuesday. The embassy said this year's “Isang Bangkang Malaya” was a success as it attracted an "even bigger number of contestants" from the Filipino community. "The  Philippine Embassy in Singapore  is fully supportive of the event as it not only helps promote unity and camaraderie but it also brings into consciousness the value of physical sports in the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle among Filipino nationals in Singapore," the embassy said. It noted the yearly competition is organized by the Filipino Dragons Singapore (FDS) to commemorate the proclamation of Philippine independence. For this year's competition, Team “Isang Sagwan ng Ina Mo Rin” won the championship. Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Antonio Morales attended the event, along with Glenn Peñaranda of the Philippine Trade and...

The Philippine Embassy in Washington D.C. will be closed on July 4 in observance of US Independence Day. In a post on its website, the embassy said it will resume regular working hours on July 7, the Monday after the holiday. "In observance of  US Independence Day, the Philippine Embassy will be closed  on 4 July 2014. Regular working hours will resume on 7 July 2014," it said. July 4 is a federal holiday in the US, marking the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.  —  Joel Locsin  /LBG, GMA News

Filipino workers bound abroad for work can now register as overseas voters for the 2016 Presidential elections. A press statement from the Department of Foreign Affairs said the first Overseas Voter Registration Center (OVRC) in the Philippines opened Friday at the DFA's Office of Consular Affairs at the ASEANA Business Park along Macapagal Avenue. Voters who register there may also have their passports renewed without waiting in line at the Passport Division's Courtesy Lane, it added. All Filipinos abroad during the 30 day overseas voting period (from April 9 to May 9, 2016) may register at all Philippine Foreign Service Posts. Other OVRCs may soon be opened at the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), Commission on Filipino Overseas (CFO), and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA). On the other hand, Passport Satellite Offices in Metro Manila and Regional Consular Offices in Cebu and Davao may also host OVRC...

SYDNEY - Australian authorities issued a warning about cheap, non-compliant USB-style chargers Friday after a young woman died from apparent electrocution while using a laptop and possibly a smartphone.   The 28-year-old was found wearing headphones and with her computer in her lap with burns on her chest and ears at a home in Gosford, north of Sydney, in April.   Police are still investigating the circumstances of the death but the Department of Fair Trading, which has assisted with the case, suggested a sub-standard mobile phone charger could be to blame.   The woman, whom reports said was from the Philippines but had recently become an Australian citizen, had headphones plugged into her laptop, which was connected to a power socket to charge.   "The phone was also plugged into a USB-style charger. That charger had failed," Lynelle Collins from the New South Wales Department of Fair Trading told AFP.   "Somehow power from that charger has ...

The Department of Labor and Employment is now investigating an unlicensed recruiter allegedly promising to send prospective overseas Filipino workers to Australia. DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz ordered the probe following a complaint from the father of a female OFW planning to work in Australia as a nurse. She said the OFW's father claimed the company, identified as  Philippine Management, Inc. , is "enticing Filipino registered nurses to apply for nursing positions in Australia, with a promise of P2.5 million in annual earnings and financial assistance for those who will apply.” Baldoz referred the complaint to the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration's Legal Assistance Division for investigation. On the other hand, the DOLE said Philippine Management Inc. is not on the list of overseas recruitment agencies licensed with the POEA. Yet, the DOLE noted there is a website, www.philmanagementinc.com, claiming to be formerly "Armstrong Canada." The site cl...

NEW YORK -   The New York City Council on Thursday voted to create the nation's largest municipal identification card program to include illegal immigrants.   The plan, approved in a 43-3 vote with two abstentions, will allow some 500,000 illegal immigrants in the city to open bank accounts, sign apartment leases and access other services where a photo ID is required.   Supporters of the bill, including Mayor Bill de Blasio, said the ID cards will reduce obstacles for senior citizens, homeless individuals and illegal immigrants.   "Every New Yorker deserves an official identification that allows them to prove who they are and access core services, de Blasio said in a statement after the vote.   "The municipal ID is more than just a card - it provides New Yorkers who are currently living in the shadows with dignity and peace of mind," de Blasio said.   The legislation puts New York on a list of other U.S. cities with large immigrant popul...

A criminal court in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has sentenced a Syrian national to three-year imprisonment for allowing his friends to rape his Filipina wife. A report on The Filipino Times  said the sentence was handed down by Presiding Judge Hassan Al Bu Rogha and Judges Hamad Abdul Karim and Hani Bassam of the Ras Al Khaimah Criminal Court. A  separate report on Gulf News  said the incident happened in May after a night of drinking. The reports did not identify both the husband and the wife, but the Filipino Times described him as 29 years old and her 20 years old and a mother. Citing court records, Gulf News said the woman’s husband and his friends had been drinking alcohol at the couple’s home in Ras Al Khaimah. It said the Syrian got angry at his wife after she refused to have sex with him because her son was asleep in their bed. The Gulf News report said the infuriated husband then ordered his friends to rape his wife in their living room. The case was filed by...

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz this week ordered agencies assisting repatriated distressed overseas Filipino workers to further simplify their procedures at the airport. Baldoz issued the directive after being shown the step-by-step process of assistance to distressed OFWs who arrive at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. “We need to simplify more some of the processes to shorten the time of OFWs' stay at the airport for them to go home to their families. They only want to be with their loved ones as fast as possible," Baldoz said in a  statement  Thursday. She directed her instructions to: - Undersecretary Reydeluz Conferido - Philippine Overseas Employment Administration chief Hans Leo Cacdac - Overseas Workers Welfare Administration chief Rebecca Calzado - National Reintegration Center for OFWs Director Violeta Munoz Step by step OWWA Repatriation Assistance Division (RAD) head Yolanda Peñaranda had briefed Baldoz, Conferido, Cacdac, Calzado, and Muñoz on the step-by...

When Msgt. Jacinto Bernardo, a retiring Filipino-American US Marine, returned to California from Japan last week, he was surprised to be fetched from the airport by a limo and brought to a home that hardly looked like the one he left behind. It turned out that his fix-upper house was renovated and improved without his knowledge using money that his fellow Marine Jeremy Epperson raised in order to honor him for his heroism as a soldier. According to an article on The Blaze , Epperson raised roughly $70,000 for the renovation of Bernardo's house through a program he called “Homecoming Heroes.” Screengrab from ABC7 News Epperson was quoted in the article as saying that no retiring US Marine should have to return to a home that is a “fix-upper,” a real-estate slang word for a property that requires maintenance work. The article said Bernardo, an Iraq war veteran,  got emotional while talking to a local news station about the surprise his friend gave him . “We are proud of our serv...

Officials from the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait on Thursday inspected the Iraq-Kuwait border to conduct a first-hand assessment of the security situation there following a series of rebel attacks in Iraq. Consul General Ramon Dado led the delegation, according to a report on GMA News' "Balitanghali," adding the group found that the border was operating normally. The report quoted Dado as saying that it is the embassy's priority to remain on top of the situation in case the violence in Iraq spills over to Kuwait, home to at least 180,000 Filipinos. Dado said the embassy is prepared to assist Filipinos in evacuating from Kuwait should the country become embroiled in conflict. The Department of Foreign Affairs has raised Crisis Alert Level 4, the highest alert level on troubled states, in Iraq  due to the ongoing armed conflict there blamed on the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), reportedly an al Qaeda breakaway faction. There are at least 900 Filipino workers in ...

POMONA, Calif.  – Jury selection began June 10 at the Superior Court here for the trial of Tomas Infante, 62, of West Covina. Infante is accused of killing his wife Charito Vega Tolentino on Jan. 11, 2013. Deputies found her body at the back of her abandoned red Toyota RAV4 at the Hawaiian Gardens Casino parking lot in Hawaiian Gardens on Jan. 13, 2013. Infante was charged with one count of murder by the District Attorney’s Office, Pomona Branch (Case No. KA100655). He remains in custody at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in Los Angeles on $1 million bail. If convicted as charged, Infante faces a maximum sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole. Arrest Infante was arrested by the West Covina Police and the Sheriff’s homicide investigators on Jan. 14, after serving a search warrant at the couple’s residence on Hollenbeck Street in West Covina.   The couple had a 17-year-old daughter living at their home at the time.   Lt. John Corina of the Homicide ...

Starting July 1, the Philippine Embassy in Singapore will charge a standard consular fee of SGD42.50 (nearly P1,500) for acknowledging the fingerprinting of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) clearance. In a  statement on its website , the embassy said the fee is in line with the Department of Foreign Affairs’ regular schedule of fees for services rendered by the embassy's consular officers. "Applicants for NBI clearance will still need to set an online appointment for this service, and to follow all steps, as enumerated in our guidelines for NBI fingerprinting, in our website," it said. In a  separate web page , the embassy said that while the NBI form is not a consular document, the Philippine Embassy assists Filipinos applying for NBI clearance in terms of fingerprinting on the card form. "Upon completion of the requirements below, the applicant sends the form, together with a special power of attorney, to his/her authorized representative in the Philippin...

A $2,000 reward is being offered by the family of limo driver Robert Martirez, 56, who died June 24 or two days after he was attacked blocks away from his Elmhurst home. Some members of the Filipino-American community also contributed to the reward fund. This was disclosed by Consul Felipe Carino, who told The FilAm the family has also requested for privacy. “His family has requested for privacy, according to the hospital, but we left contact details in case they would need any assistance,” said Carino who is in charge of the Philippine Consulate’s Assistance to Nationals (ATN) unit. Carino disputed reports about racial slurs allegedly coming from the suspect. Published reports state that the unidentified attacker asked Martires “Are you Filipino?” before punching him in the face around midnight of June 22. “It’s not along racial lines, according to investigation provided to us,” Carino said. “No conclusion at this time, but we hope the investigation is fair.” Martirez died the afterno...