MASBATE-PHILIPPINES: June 2008

Thursday, June 26, 2008

M/V Princess of The Stars Video Tribute

0 comments Posted by masbate-philppines at 4:17 PM

paglubog ng M/V PRINCES OF THE STARS!

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

MV PRINCESS OF THE STAR

0 comments Posted by masbate-philppines at 5:03 AM

Relatives of passengers of capsized ship question lack of info on their kin

Dozens of people, some in tears, crowded into the offices of Sulpicio Lines, owner of the capsized MV Princess of the Stars, in Cebu province and at the North Harbor in Manila to get information about their loved ones who were on board the ill-fated ship.

Rescuers were trying to reach the scene where the MV Princess of the Stars sank on Sibuyan Island, Romblon but churning waves from Typhoon Frank (international codename Fengshen) made the crossing hazardous.

San Fernando Mayor Nanette Tansingco confirmed that four survivors had been found but at least four others aboard are known to have died. Hundreds of passengers are still unaccounted for.

"My father was one of the passengers. Right now there is no good news," said Lani Dakay. "My father is 59, I don't even know if he can swim."

Officials said the ship had 626 passengers and 121 crew on board.

The families of the victims blamed the Sulpicio management and the Philippine Coast Guard, saying the ship should have not been allowed to set sail because of the bad weather.

They also lashed out at Sulpicio management for not personally informing them about the tragedy, saying they only heard of the incident in television and radio reports.

Maricel Solatorio, wife of one of the crewmembers, lamented that the management refused to give any detail regarding the condition of the ship and its passengers even to them.

Lawyer Manuel Espitan, legal counsel for Sulpicio Lines, maintained that the ship did not receive an advice from Coast Guard that it was not safe to sail.

Metro Manila was still under public storm warning signal No. 1 when MV Princess of the Star left the port for Cebu Friday.

The management said it will give the relatives any information as soon as it is available as it assured that search and rescue operations are on full swing.

Built in 1984, MV Princes of the Stars has a gross tonnage of 23,824.17 and total passenger capacity of 1,992 people. Trina Lagura, Reuters and ANC

SONA 2008 Webcast

PGMA’s SONA 2008 to center on subsidy, electricity, food production & infrastructure – Ermita President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) this year will center on government’s subsidies for the poor, electricity, food production and infrastructure. This was revealed this afternoon by Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita who also said that the President will “gauge whether enough has been achieved” in the above-mentioned areas. Ermita -- who is also the Presidential Spokesman in concurrent capacity following the transfer of former Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio R. Bunye to the Monetary Board – said the President is now in possession of “accompanying documents” from agencies to help her craft her SONA 2008. “She will go over it, grade it (the set of documents)…” said Ermita. The hands-on President has been “going through this (SONA preparation) many times,” said Ermita, adding that yesterday, President Arroyo discussed the content for the latest SONA for over two hours. Ermita said the President will center on subsidies, electricity, food production and infrastructure, specifically “to what extent these have been achieved.” President Arroyo will also touch on the roll-on, roll-off (RORO) of the Strong Republic Nautical Highway (SR-NH), and balancing the budget. There will be both “mid-range and long-range” items, said Ermita, adding that the President will also touch on highways, airports, seaports, plus the electrification of all barangays. The President’s Ten-Point Agenda are as follows: 1. The creation of six million jobs in six years via more opportunities given to entrepreneurs, tripling of the amount of loans for lending to small and medium enterprises, and the development of one to two million hectares of land for agricultural business; 2. The construction of new buildings, classrooms, provision of desks and chairs and books for students and scholarships to poor families; 3. The balancing of the budget; 4. The "decentralization" of progress around the nation through the use of transportation networks like the roll-on, roll-off and the digital infrastructure; 5. The provision of electricity and water supply to barangays nationwide; 6. The decongestion of Metro Manila by forming new cores of government and housing centers in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao; 7. The development of Clark and Subic as the best international service and logistic centers in the region; 8. The automation of the electoral process; 9. A just end to the peace process; and 10. A fair closure to the divisiveness among the Edsa 1, 2 and 3 forces.