KAKAMMPI News

By Bombo Dave Vincent Pasit -July 12, 2020 | 1:12 PM135 Aabot sa 10,369 Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) ang umuwi ng Pilipinas mula sa iba’t ibang bansa noong nakaraang linggo, ayon sa Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Dahil dito, pumalo na sa 78,809 OFWs ang umuwi ng Pilipinas magmula ng sinimulan ng pamahalaan ang repatriation efforts nito noong Pebrero 2020. Nasa 47.16 percent sa naturang bilang o 37,166 OFWs ang sea-based at 52.84 percent naman o 41,643 OFWs ang land-based. Sinabi ng DFA na karamihan sa mga kakauwi lang ng bansa ay nanggaling sa France, Netherlands, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, USA at Vietnam, na pawang dumating noong Biyernes lamang. “The DFA continues to facilitate more flights from the Middle East which is home to over 2 million overseas Filipinos,” saad ng DFA.

By Bombo Dave Vincent Pasit -July 16, 2020 | 2:03 PM23 Nakarating na ng Pilipinas ang mahigit 400 Pinoy mula Lebanon na kabilang sa tinaguriang “single mass repatriation flight” sa kasaysayan ng bansa, ayon sa Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Sa isang Twitter post, sinabi ng DFA na 410 Pinoy ang natulungan ng Philippine Embassy sa Beirut na makauwi ng bansa. Karamihan sa mga ito ayon sa DFA ay ilang taon nang naninirahan sa Lebanon. Ang mga repatriates na ito ay beneficiaries ng libreng voluntary mass repatriation program ng embahada, na nagsimula noong pang Disyembre 2019. Sinabi ng DFA na 1,023 Pinoys na ang kabuuang bilang natulungan ng embahada na makauwi sa loob ng 15 flights.

By Bombo Christian Yosores -July 16, 2020 | 3:01 PM29 Inalerto na ng Department of Health (DOH) ang mga sangay nitong nakatutok sa sitwasyon ng malaria, tuberculosis at HIV sa bansa dahil sa epekto ng COVID-19 pandemic sa iba pang health services. Lumabas kasi sa isang pag-aaral sa United Kingdom na dahil sa epekto ng pandemic sa health services, posibleng dumami ang bilang ng mga mamamatay sa nasabing sakit sa mahihirap na bansa. “In countries with a high malaria burden and large HIV and TB epidemics, even short-term disruptions could have devastating consequences for the millions of people who depend on programs to control and treat these diseases,” ani Timothy Hallet ng Imperial College London at co-author ng research. Ayon kay Health Usec. Maria Rosario Vergeire, sa ngayon ay wala pang nakikitang banta ang National Malaria Control and Elimination Program sa pagkalat ng sakit dahil limitado lang sa tatlong probinsya ang community transmission ng malaria: Palawan, Sultan Kudara...

By Bombo Christian Yosores -July 15, 2020 | 9:14 PM175 Nangako na raw sa Pilipinas ang World Health Organization (WHO) na makakatanggap ng supply ng bakuna sa COVID-19 ang estado kapag nadiskubre at napatunayan na ang pagiging epektibo nito sa mga tinamaan ng sakit. “‘Yung WHO, ni-reassure nila tayo last week na gumagawa sila ng mechanism para ‘yung mga countries na sasali doon, matulungan tayo na magkaroon ng equitable distribution ng vaccines,” ayon kay Food and Drug Administration (FDA) director general Eric Domingo. Pahayag ito ng opisyal sa gitna ng mga ulat na nauna nang umorder ng COVID-19 vaccine ang Amerika at mga bansa sa Europa. “Ang WHO mismo, meron siyang inisyatibo para magkaroon tayong lahat ng access, lahat ng iba ibang bansa sa iba ibang parte ng mundo,” dagdag ni Domingo. Una nang sinabi ng FDA chief na may magandang dulot sa bansa ang pagsali nito sa mga international clinical trials. Tulad ng mabilis na access sa madidiskubreng gamot o bakuna, at mabilis na ap...

July 15, 2020 ByRyan Ponce Pacpaco People's Tonight Alan Peter Cayetano SPEAKER Alan Peter Cayetano on Tuesday urged the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) to convene an inter-agency meeting to discuss how their respective programs can be integrated to respond to issues and concerns affecting overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) abroad and those who are returning to the country. During Tuesday’s hybrid briefing of the House committee on public accounts chaired by Anakalusugan party-list Rep. Mike Defensor on the whole-of-government approach in its migration policy response to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, Cayetano cited the need to submit an “integrated and comprehensive plan” for OFWs. To ensure that the needs of the OFW programs are sustained amid the battle against COVID-19, Cayetano asked the DFA, DoLE, and other OFW-related agencies to submit their funding requirements that can be funded either under the...

June 12, 2020 ByRyan Ponce Pacpaco People's Tonight A FORMER congressman who is a known overseas Filipino workers’ (OFWs) rights advocate was appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte as the new deputy director general for operations of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA). Aniceto “John” Bertiz III, a former ACTS-OFW party-list lawmaker, takes over the post vacated by the late Gladys Fua Rosales who succumbed to novel coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) infection last April 3 at the age of 42. “In the face of a looming recession, you and I should think of creative ways not only to save lives but also livelihoods, especially as we anticipate the unprecedented return of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who have lost their jobs abroad,” said Bertiz, ACTS-OFW Chairman. “I thank the President for his trust and confidence, and I humbly accept the opportunity to be once again at the service of our nation and our people, especially those who lost their jobs during ...

June 14, 2020 ByCristina Lee-Pisco People's Tonight THE Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) yesterday said 390 Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) from Laos and Norway who were affected by the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic arrived on Saturday. They were composed of 125 land-based OFWs from Laos who flew in via Air Asia flight Z2 8293 and 265 sea-based workers from Norway who arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport VIA Evelop Air EV 659. Our kababayans had been eagerly waiting to return back home for months, the DFA said adding the OFWs are just days closer to reuniting with their families. The Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging and Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) One Stop Shop at the airport continues to ensure that our repatriated kababayans will arrive safe and sound to their loved ones waiting at home. Upon arrival, they underwent RT-PCR COVID-19 testing, thorough documentation screening as well as briefing on current safety protocols prescribed by the I...

Agence France-Presse Posted at Jul 15 2020 08:09 PM MOSCOW - The Russian defense ministry said on Wednesday it had developed a "safe" coronavirus vaccine following clinical trials on a group of volunteers. The ministry said 18 people had participated in the research and were discharged without "serious adverse events, health complaints, complications or side effects". The results of the trials "allow us to speak with confidence about the safety and good tolerability of the vaccine", it said in a statement. The defense ministry did not say whether the vaccine was in fact effective but a doctor working on the trials said the volunteers were now protected against the coronavirus. "Their immunity is working well, antibodies are being created, they are protected against the coronavirus," researcher Svetlana Volchikhina said in a video released by the defense ministry. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin during the heig...

Agence France-Presse Posted at Jul 15 2020 01:45 PM WASHINGTON - The United States recorded 63,262 new coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, according to a tally by the Johns Hopkins University on Tuesday. The total number of cases recorded in the country since the start of the pandemic now exceeds 3.42 million, according to the Baltimore-based university. COVID-19 also claimed 850 new victims in the United States in the past 24 hours, bringing the total death toll to 136,432, according to the institution's tracker at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday (8:30 a.m. in Manila Wednesday). The world's wealthiest country has in recent weeks seen a surge in infections, mainly in its south and west, which have kept it by far the most affected nation. In Florida, which was one of the first states to lift lockdown restrictions, for example, officials reported 132 deaths Tuesday -- a new daily record for the state -- while more than 9,000 new cases of the virus were detected there in the pa...

Steven Lee Myers, The New York Times Posted at Jul 16 2020 08:35 AM Protesters in the Causeway Bay neighborhood of Hong Kong, on Wednesday, July 1, 2020. China on July 14, sharply criticized President Donald Trump’s moves to strip Hong Kong of its preferential trading status with the US and clear the way for new sanctions on officials and companies there, vowing to retaliate with punitive measures of its own. Lam Yik Fei, The New York Times China on Wednesday sharply criticized President Donald Trump’s moves to strip Hong Kong of its preferential trading status with the United States and clear the way for new sanctions on officials and companies there, vowing to retaliate with punitive measures of its own. The response from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing promised to continue a pattern of tit-for-tat punishments that have accompanied the sharp downward turn in relations between the two countries on a variety of fronts, from trade to technology to human rights. China was ...

Diego Urdaneta, Agence France-Presse Posted at Jul 16 2020 03:19 PM MADRID - With a watchful eye on the latest virus outbreaks, Spain pauses Thursday to honor its 28,400 victims at a state ceremony joined by top EU and World Health Organization figures. Barely three weeks after coming out of lockdown, Spain has seen a surge in cases and health officials monitoring more than 120 active outbreaks. The most worrying is in and around the northeastern city of Lerida, where the Catalan regional government has issued a stay-home order affecting 160,000 people. Authorities there and in several other regions have stepped up precautions, with mask-wearing compulsory in public at all times, even if the safety distance can be respected. DIPLOMATIC SUPPORT Among those attending will be EU Council head Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, European Parliament leader David Sassoli and top EU diplomat Josep Borrell. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus will als...

Agence France-Presse Posted at Jul 16 2020 03:21 PM Fetuses are rarely infected with COVID-19 because the placenta produces very small amounts of the receptor that the coronavirus latches on to when it invades human cells, according to a study. The placenta plays a role in stopping harmful substances from being passed down from a mother to her unborn child -- but certain pathogens like the Zika virus are known to cross this barrier frequently. The new study, which was led by Roberto Romero at the US National Institutes of Health, and published in the journal eLife on Tuesday, sequenced genetic material taken from placental membranes that contain the fetus and amniotic fluid. The researchers found it lacked the instructions required to manufacture a protein called angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 or, ACE2, which is found throughout the body in adults. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is thought to enter the human body through its airways, then attack organs with high levels of ACE2 receptors, ...

EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES for overseas workers are now required to submit online the requirements for license renewal and application while actual inspections are suspended amid the coronavirus crisis. The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) announced the policy through Advisory No. 90 dated July 3. Apart from sending via e-mail, another option is leaving hard copies of the required documents in designated drop boxes at the POEA office lobby. The new rule applies to agencies of both land-based and sea-based workers. “(T)he ocular inspection/assessment of landbased and seabased agencies, including applicant-companies, undertaken by the Inspectorate of the Licensing branch and the POEA Regional Offices have been temporarily suspended,” the agency said. POEA will validate the documents after the suspension is lifted. — Gillian M. Cortez

The Manila Times 7/5/2020 THE Social Security System (SSS) is now ready to accept online applications for the unemployment benefit from members, who were involuntarily separated from work due to the huge impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Aurora Ignacio said, “Job loss in times of global health crisis is one of the worst-case scenarios that we wish would never happen. However, as a pension fund, we have to anticipate these kinds of contingencies by allocating funds and providing our members with safer, faster and more convenient means of filing benefit claims and receiving their cash benefits.” To qualify for the unemployment benefit, covered employees, including kasambahays and overseas Filipino worker (OFW) members, must have paid at least 36 monthly SSS contributions, wherein 12 months of it should have been paid within the last 18 months before the month of involuntary separation. Reasons for involuntary separat...

The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) is seriously considering the release of a second tranche of its Interim Reimbursement Mechanism (IRM) or emergency cash advance to help hospitals with needed liquidity so that they can respond better to the increasing Covid-19 patients. The Agency said it will review each hospital’s utilization of the first IRM tranche, and will ask them to start liquidating the said funds to be eligible for the second tranche. The second wave of IRM funds will be made available to Covid-19 hospitals specifically those in high concentration areas such as the National Capital Region, Regions III, IV and VII where bed capacity either reached full capacity or in critical levels as coronavirus infections increase due to the easing of quarantine policies. However, overall nationwide total covid 19 admissions was only a little over 50% with most admissions in Level 3 or apex referral hospitals. For the second wave of IRM, the state agency ...

Fr. Shay Cullen 17 July 2020 Justice has been done and seen to be done by Judge Maria Angelica T. Paras-Quiambao of the Regional Trial Court Branch 59 in Angeles City, Pampanga last 11 June 2020. In a 81-page decision, she found Christina Limpin Mendoza, 22, guilty beyond reasonable doubt of five counts of human trafficking for sexual exploitation by foreign pedophiles of two small children nine and 11 over a three year period.  The trafficker was sentenced to several life terms of imprisonment. This is a powerful message that child abusers and human traffickers will bear the full weight of the law. The Preda Foundation was supporting the children all the way in this significant case. In another case, Judge Gemma Theresa B. Hilario-Logronio of the Regional Trial Court Branch12-FC in Olongapo City found Johnny Torres Medina guilty in a landmark decision dated 14 May 2020. He was found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of child sexual abuse of two 11-year old children. Th...

By Divina Nova Joy Dela    Cruz The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) plans to bring home 50,557 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) stranded abroad by the end of July, Undersecretary Sarah Lou Arriola told lawmakers on Tuesday. Overseas Filipino workers. DFA Photo The target was set after the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) allowed more flights, Arriola said. In June, the DFA reported that 167,626 OFWs, including 88,000 in Saudi Arabia, had been stranded because of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic. If the government would fly home 50,000 OFWs this month, the DFA said it would repatriate the remaining 117,049 in two months. “We think that we can bring them home in a month and a half or in two months but, of course, that number will still increase because if we do not find a vaccine,” Arriola told lawmakers during the hearing of the Committee on Public Accounts Arriola s...

By Jomar Canlas, TMT July 6, 2020 AN additional P2.5 billion is needed to extend the cash assistance program to repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) affected by the coronavirus pandemic, the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said on Sunday. Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello 3rd Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello 3rd said the government needs the money to attend to the increasing number of on-site and repatriated OFWs who were requesting assistance. DoLE earlier gave P2.5 billion in two tranches to finance the Abot Kamay ang Pagtulong Program (AKAP), a one-time emergency cash aid of $200 or P10,000 to help OFWs displaced by the pandemic. Financing for the program came from the emergency fund under the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act. Of the 250,000 targeted OFWs, 188,473 have received the cash aid as of July 4, amounting to P1.927 billion. About 56,283 beneficiaries have yet to receive the cash assistance. Bello pointed out that as of July 4, DoLE’s over...

Katie Forster, Agence France-Presse Posted at  Jul 09 2020 11:58 AM HONG KONG - TikTok's exit from Hong Kong was met with a shrug among many locals who distrust the Chinese social media platform, but the app had been embraced by many foreign domestic workers as a way to creatively escape the drudgery of their toil. The globally popular video-sharing app was used by many of the city's 370,000 foreign helpers, as they are commonly known in the finance hub.  In between cooking, cleaning and childcare duties in Hong Kong's cramped family homes they filmed creative, witty and sometimes scathing insights into their daily lives.  But this week TikTok, owned by China's ByteDance, said it would no longer work in Hong Kong after a new security law imposed by Beijing gave authorities sweeping powers to police local users. Joane, a domestic worker from the Philippines, said she was "a bit sad" to see the app go. "It also helped me release so...

Fr. Shay Cullen. 10 July 2010   People sick from Covid-19 in the Europe, Africa, the Philippines and the rest of Asia gasping and struggling to recover in a hospital bed will have to struggle harder to survive. This is because the only drug known to help patients recover quicker, Remdesivir, is unavailable. The United States has bought up the entire available supply of this drug and it is only available to Americans suffering from Covid-19. Donald Trump, in order to cover up his criminal neglect to stop the spread of the pandemic and boost his re-election bid, is depriving others of a fair share of the available drug manufactured by the American company, Gilead Sciences of California.   This manipulation and fast grabbing of the drug for a selfish monopoly over vital medicines has severe, deadly consequences for the future when a vaccine becomes available. The United States will attempt to buy all available vaccines for Americans and deprive other nations of a fai...