DOTr orders maritime sector officials to aid stranded passengers in ports; Reiterates “Returning Home” is essential

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Allow the children to go home! Tugade orders maritime sector officials to aid stranded passengers in ports; Reiterates “Returning Home” is essential

Immediately after monitoring a news report aired yesterday in the evening, January 19, showing stranded passengers with children at the Manila North Harbor bound for Bacolod and Zamboanga, Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Art Tugade immediately called for a meeting at 8:30PM with the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), and other transport officials and agencies concerned, and ordered them to immediately allow stranded passengers with children returning home to their provinces to leave, as “returning home”, from the very beginning, is considered a form of essential travel.

According to the report, the reason why the children were not allowed to board was because their parents were not vaccinated and did not have the proper requirements and documentation.

“When I saw the news, I was mad and fuming,” Secretary Tugade said.

“My instruction from the very beginning is plain and simple— The No Vaxx, No Ride/Entry policy should be implementated as patient and tolerant as possible, but firm,” Sec. Tugade added.

“I immediately called a meeting at 8:30PM and ordered the PPA, through General Manager Jay Santiago, to immediately allow the stranded passengers with children to return home to their provinces, provide them with food, assist in the costs of their tickets, and give financial assistance. PPA assured me that these instructions will be executed not later than this morning. After all, returning home is essential travel!” Sec. Tugade added.

Secretary Tugade likewise reiterated his previous directive to all transport sectors to put vaccination stations in strategic places, similar to what the road sector has done and established at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange since July last year.

“Make sure to continue our vaccination efforts at the PITX. Put similar vaccination facilities in rail stations and in North Harbor,” Sec Tugade ordered.

“I have also ordered the Toll Regulatory Board to consider having vaccination stations at NLEX and other Toll Roads. This is now being discussed by the TRB with toll operators,” Sec Tugade said.

Hack4Food: Agriculture and Food Innovation Challenge 2022

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

A call to action

Hack4Food: Agriculture and Food Innovation Challenge 2022 aims to foster creativity and collaboration in solving the challenges facing agriculture and food systems.  The agriculture and food value chain -- from production to distribution, and up to consumption-- can substantially gain from clever imagination and novel thinking.

The Philippines is home to an estimated 111 million people spread across its 7,641 islands.  Ensuring food sustainability and inclusivity for its growing population is serious business.  Achieving the desired state of agriculture will require a lot of work from both the public and private sectors. The youth of our country have a substantial stake in propelling the developmental progress of agriculture as they will inherit all its gifts and ills.

This one-week virtual hackathon challenges the youth to step-up and make a positive impact in agriculture and food challenges. It is open to all stakeholders passionate about the fate of the planet and its inhabitants and committed to make a difference.

Hack4Food is brought to you by the Rotary Club of Makati (RCM), in collaboration with Rotary Club of Bay, Rotaract Club of Makati, and the Analytics Association of the Philippines (AAP).

Challenges

●       Improving the lives of farmers/fisherfolks through enhanced economies of scale (i.e., reduced production costs, increased yields, decreased cost per unit of output);

●       Empowering farmers through collective action and by aggregating their outputs into viable clusters that improve operations and profits;

●       Enhancing farmer profits through direct matching of producer and buyer; and reducing the participation of middlemen to the lowest possible level without adversely affecting the supply chain;

●       Supporting and encouraging farmers to engage in crop diversification, which has been proven to help fertilize the soil;

●       Implementing digital technologies and data analytics which enhance overall farm productivity and efficiency;

●       Creating object detection technologies which can aid in production and/or distribution decisions;

●       Designing value chains that take into account climate change and other sources of risks;

●       Developing forecasting models and tools that guide decision-making in value chains;

Prizes

1st place	₱50,000
2nd place	₱30,000
3rd place	₱20,000

Eligibility

●       Groups of 2-5 or individuals

●       Filipino citizens within the Philippines

●       No age limit

Registration

Please visit hack4food.co for more details. Deadline is on Saturday, February 26th, 2022 at 11:59 PM.

Contact

For any questions and concerns, please e-mail at info@hack4food.co.

Pasig city Vice Mayor Iyo Bernardo versus Mayor Vico Sotto

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Pasig City Vice Mayor Iyo Bernardo hits Mayor Vico Sotto for allegedly politicizing and using social media to cover the flaws of his governance in the city. 

Iyo Bernardo blasts Vico Sotto for allegedly besmirching his family’s name and reputation during the flag ceremony last week.

Bernardo to Sotto: “Suwerte ka sumikat ka ngayong panahon ng social media… Alam mo ang formula para mapansin, sumikat at mapag-usapan” 

Pasig Vice Mayor Iyo Bernardo says Mayor Vico Sotto allegedly scolded him and the city council for passing an ordinance that increased the cash aid for tricycle drivers to P4,000 from P3,000.

Bernardo questioned the purchase of drones, hiring of non-Pasigueños as department heads.

He likens Mayor Vico Sotto to an actor, reaping awards even if there are other people working behind the scenes.

“Nakakalungkot ang Pasig. Naging isang pelikula na lamang, puro palabas.” 

Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto hit Vice Mayor Iyo Bernardo for skipping several meetings and not responding to his text messages. 

"Sana bago natin pag-usapan ang pulitika, bago tayo mamulitika, magtrabaho muna tayo," he added. 

Teka. Is it just me? Or after all this time… now ko lang napansin na meron nga palang Vice Mayor ang Pasig.  

Vico Sotto has been doing such a brilliant job as Mayor of Pasig that I’ve totally forgotten we even had a Vice Mayor! 

The video of Pasig city Vice Mayor Iyo Bernardo reeks insecurity. I don't think na need problemahin yung mga binanggit niya if his intention as a public servant is to better the lives of people sa nasasakupan niya and if these resulted to actual improvement ng Pasig.

Itong response niya ang nagpa "pelikula". What a drama. Even if what he is saying is true that Mayor Vico did not really reach out to him, is he really not gonna fix this in person? So "papatulan" niya lang dahil publicly din sya inaddress? Who's making it a "palabas" now?

Iyo Caruncho Bernardo is the "palabas". And really, attacking someone while on quarantine? How low!

I believe it will be best to just line up your accomplishments and support your current local government rather than lambast Vico Sotto. Hindi na nga nararamdaman sa Pasig, pero puro pa paninira?

Vico Sotto is one of few politicians who have initiative in transparency. Very open to where they spend Pasig City's resources. Kaya rin sya sumikat because he really stepped up during this pandemic.

Vico may have a lot of press releases, just as Manila Mayor Isko Moreno had. But Vico seems to be the real deal...at least that's how he is perceived by many. Pasig seems to be doing great under his lead. So I guess, the Vice Mayor needs a good PR team as well?

As a Pasigueño, kahit anong ibato ni Vice Mayor Iyo kay Mayor Vico, Mayor Vico will still win the 2022 election. It’s simple, Vico gave Pasig hope, not a perfect leadership, yes, but way better than before when it was always a Eusebio who was running the city. Years of leadership passing from Enteng, to his wife, then to Bobby, then his wife, then an attempt to regain it but Vico won. It's about time somebody took over Pasig city. So Vice Mayor, just do your job like it’s your last.

Oh, it will be your last na pala. Labas na agad at huwag ng hintayin ang election. Nakakahiya. Lol! A political dynasty has never been favorable for many.

I believe it's the other way around. The political dynasties like the Carunchos and Eusebios of Pasig, the Dutertes of Davao, the Estradas of San Juan, the Remullas of Cavite, and the Marcoses of Ilocos are  the masters of theatrics.

The Vice Mayor is obviously nitpicking & riding on the popularity of Vico. His ego is shocking considering his family dynasty did so little in the many years they were there. Samantalang it only took 3 years for Vico to put Pasig on the map!

For the longest wala naman siyang paramdam sa Pasig, maybe except for his many tarpaulins of greetings and his raffles of shoes, tapos all of a sudden maingay siya at yung pinakasikat na Mayor ng Pilipinas pa ang kokontrahin niya? 

From his hair to the way he conducts his politics there's only one thing to be said: 

STYLE NIYA BULOK!