Dismissal Case Against LTFRB Regional Director Based on Verified Reports

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) stands firm in its decision to terminate Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Regional Director Jun Abrazaldo due to his alleged involvement in corrupt practices.

Transportation Chief Arthur Tugade maintains a “One Strike Policy” against corrupt officials to make sure that rotten tomatoes do not mix with employees who uphold honest and transparent governance.

“Patunay lang ito na wala kaming pinalalampas sa Departamento. Mapa-opisyal o ordinaryong empleyado, basta’t hindi tama ang ginagawa, hindi ako magdadalawang isip na sibakin kayo. Utos iyan mismo ni Pangulong Duterte”, said Tugade.

Factual basis

According to LTFRB Chairman Atty. Martin Delgra III, Abrazaldo’s case was never based on unadulterated imagination as it is rooted from three (3) reports presented by the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) that were received by the LTFRB on August and December 2017 and February 2018.

Apart from the intel reports, other complaints were also lodged to the LTFRB main office concerning Abrazaldo.

One complaint stated that sometime in 2017, a vehicular incident involving two trucks took place in Atimonan, Quezon Province. The first truck is owned by a trucking company with principal office in Quezon City while the second truck has a principal office in Naga City.

When both parties did not reach a compromised agreement, the owner of the second truck filed a case before the office of Abrazaldo. The Regional Director then threatened the owner of the first truck with suspension of franchise if the latter will not agree to pay PhP3 Million pesos as demanded by the owner of the second truck. He further threatened the owner with confiscation of 11 more trucks under the franchise of the first truck owner. This, despite not having the legal authority to hear the case as the incident took place in Region 4A.

In a separate incident, Mr. Rogelio Erni, owner and operator of Ultrabus Transportation Inc. (UTI) sought an audience with the LTFRB chairman to lodge a complaint against Abrazaldo for alleged illegal apprehension and impounding of their bus unit.

Having considered all the merits of the allegations and under the guidance of no less than President Duterte, Chairman Delgra has no reason but to recommend his termination from service.

Since Abrazaldo is a presidential appointee, his removal from office is not solely on Delgra’s hand— but upon the orders of President Duterte himself.

Delgra said, “Walang personalan, trabaho lang. Naghuhumiyaw na ang mga reklamo hindi pa ba natin aaksyunan? Kawawa naman ang taumbayan.”

Ready to face Abrazaldo head on

Chairman Delgra believes that his iron fist would irk Abrazaldo and all other officials who are involved in corruption. But, he is ready to face them and all possible made up stories aimed at pressuring the agency from doing what is right.

“We will not give in. Kahit ano pang ibato niya sa atin, hindi ako natatakot dahil ang sandigan natin ay iyong totoo lang. Nagtatrabaho tayo ng tama. Ang sabi ng Pangulong Duterte at ang mahigpit na bilin ni Secretary Tugade, wakasan ang korapsyon. Iyan po ang ginagawa natin”, said Delgra.

Transparent and open

Likewise, the Transportation Department welcomes Abrazaldo’s statements and challenges him to bring his allegations to court.

Secretary Tugade for his part, reminds everyone in government to be faithful to their oath of office. The Transportation Chief further said no amount of pressure or “padrino” will work during his time.

“Maraming ulo na ang gumugulong. Kung kurakot kayo o nagbabalak mangurakot, ‘wag niyo na ituloy dahil mahuhuli at mahuhuli ko kayo,” said Tugade.


#DOTrPH #AksyonAgad #WalangKorapsyon

Should You Buy or Lease Your Office Space? Here's A Visual Guide!

Wazzup Pilipinas!

For many companies, location is essential. You wouldn’t want to set up your office in a place where you know the business won’t thrive. In addition, the area should be able to cater to your employees’ needs and still be accessible to your current and potential partners.

Once a decision has been made as to where the office will be, the next question is whether you’d want to buy or rent an office space—and this question is often not easy to answer, even if your business is already an established one in the industry.

There are both pros and cons to buying and renting, and the answer to which one to choose really depends on multiple factors. Some of these factors include the nature of your business, the industry you’re working on, your current financial capabilities, your property preference and its cost, the number of employees, and the business strategy your choosing to implement, to name a few.

Whether you’re setting up your first office or relocating to a new one, your option should be beneficial for your business. In this infographic, you can read up on the boons and banes of buying and renting office space to help you in weighing your options, as well as the considerations you need to put forth before coming to a decision.

Journey: Art: 50: Part IV: Baybayin (Alibata) by Ivi Avellana-Cosio

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Galleria Duemila is proud to present Ivi Avellana-Cosio’s fourth part of her retrospective wherein she will present her in-depth research on the baybayin writing system, coinciding with the new law that has been passed by the House Committee on Basic Education and Culture employing the Baybayin system for the general public’s utilization. The artist’s deep-set interest for culture has manifested its way to her art since the 1970’s.

Named by the International Biographical Society in Cambridge, England as one of the Top 100 artists in 2017 and one of the top professionals in 2012, a resident name in the Philip Morris Philippine Art Awards and ASEAN Art Awards since 1994-1997 and the founding member and the past president of the Philippine Association of Printmakers, Ivi Avellana-Cosio stages her fourth exhibit at Galleria Duemila on May 5 – 29, 2018 in a series of retrospectives to mark her 50 years in creative making.

Her abstractions are compositions of vivid colors and formal elements, reminiscent of the rich culture representative of the various tribes such as the T’boli, Bagobo, Yakan, Talaandig, and B’laan and others. The paintings, a ‘neo-ethnic’ series are a combination of tribal patterns, ornaments and the baybayin, the syllabary commonly, but erroneously known as the ‘alibata’ by which the artist tells the history of common ordinary usage and eventually a genesis of creativity for the indigenous Filipinos, still unmarred by the Hispanic and Christian influences back then. It as a medium of memories, a testament of the past composed in a contemporaneous way.