All posts by Pol Pinoy

Government, Law Enforcement, Travel

Mayor Isko Moreno’s Plan To Permanently Solve EDSA Traffic

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Mayor-Isko-Moreno-1MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – It takes the likes of Isko Moreno to rid a city of illegal vendors, clean up the metropolis, and break down constructions that obstruct the flow of traffic. He could also make an entire city “green.”

Now, the Manila City Mayor has submitted his master plan to permanently solve the nightmarish traffic along EDSA.

In a memo sent to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), Moreno proposed the following which he says is a “sure fire” to ease the never-ending traffic congestion along the busy thoroughfare which traverses several cities in Metro Manila:

  1.  Arguing that mass transportation is the way to go, he proposes to permanently ban all private cars on EDSA.  The “buses-only” proposal will, however, exempt police cars, ambulances and fire trucks. One lane will be for the exclusive use of provincial buses, another for Point-to-Point buses, while the rest of the lanes will be reserved for city buses.
  2. Urge the Department of Education to institutionalize and accredit “home schooling” similar to what is being done in the U.S. He says that “if we abolish elementary school, it will cut daily commute by half since kids won’t have to leave home to get an education.  And neither do their parents or nannies.”
  3. Implement a 16-hour-a-day work shift for all government and private workers who could choose to work either on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays or Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.  Moreno says at any given day, the number of workers traveling on EDSA will be cut by half, and that morning and evening commutes will practically be eliminated.
  4. Every Sunday, EDSA will be closed to ALL vehicular traffic.  The entire avenue will be transformed into a pedestrian’s paradise.

MMDA and the other Metro Manila Mayors have yet to comment on Moreno’s proposal, but already, technocrats who heard of the master plan are poised to fully endorse it.

 

Government, International

Philippines To Give Up Claims Over Rocks In West Philippine Sea

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MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – The previous government of Noynoy Aquino has called the ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) on the Philippines’ territorial claims in the West Philippine Sea a “victory,” but the Rodrigo Duterte government calls it a “futile award.”

Duterte recently announced that at his next meeting with Xi Jinping, he will bring up the arbitration issue with the Chinese President. But what he didn’t say is that he will give up the Philippines’ claims over some of the disputed territories.

In an exclusive interview with The Adobo Chronicles, Duterte said the PCA in its ruling has  described  certain maritime features claimed by both China and the Philippines as rocks, not islands.

The Philippine arbitration panel itself argued that some of these features are indeed rocks incapable of sustaining human habitation or economic life of their own. These include Scarborough Shoal, Johnson Reef, Carterton Reef and Fiery Cross Reef, as well as Itu Aba, the biggest natural island in the Spratlys, occupied by Taiwan.

“What benefit would it be for the Philippines to lay claim to rocks,” Dutete said.
”I am not about to go to war with China over rocks,” he added.
Duterte’s decision is sure to rock the boat in as far as the PCS arbitration award favoring the Philippines is concerned.

 

Government, International

Duterte Threatens Xi Jinping: I Will Bring Home All OFWs In Hong Kong

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MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles, Manila Bureau) – The Philippines is no match to China in as far as military might and resources are concerned, so a war between the two countries is not an option to resolve the terrotorial conflict in the West Philippine Sea.

But President Rodrigo  Duterte knows where the Philippines has an upper hand: Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in Hong Kong.

OFWs are in high demand in Hong Kong, with most Filipinos serving as domestic workers.  It is estimated that there are  230,000 OFWs in this Chinese territory.

When he meets with Xi Jinping sometime in the very near future, Duterte says he will finally discuss with the Chinese leader the issue of the West Philippine Sea and 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruling which favored the Philippines. 

“If China will continue to ignore the PCA award, I will order the immediate return of all OFWs  now in Hong Kong. I know this will cause a  huge void in Hong Kong’s economy, “ Duterte said.

Duterte added that if this will still not work, he will also order the deportation of all Chinese nationals now working in the Philippines, and shut down all Chinese-owned or Chinese-named restaurants in the country.

Is this goodbye to ChowKing, Kowloon, Ma Mon Luk and other eateries in Chinatown?