Photo By Sonny Espiritu
Philippine Star, Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Female marines in full battle gear take part in the celebration of the 113th anniversary of Philippine Navy at its headquarters on Roxas Boulevard, Manila
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
In the navy
Photo By Sonny Espiritu
Manila Standard Today, Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin troops the line during the Navy's 113th founding anniversary. At left, is Vice Admiral Alexander Pama, flag officer in command.
JI's presence being monitored
By Alexis Romero
Philippine Star, Wednesday, May 25, 2011
| Marines stand on the deck of the BRP Emilio Liwanag during the 113th anniversary celebration of the Philippine Navy yesterday. The refurbished gunboat will be deployed to Zamboanga to boost internal security operations. Photo By JONJON VICENCIO MANILA, Philippines - Security forces are closely monitoring the movements of three members of terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and are bracing for possible military action against them. Marine Brig. Gen. Romeo Tanalgo, commander of the Sulu-based 2nd Marine brigade, said they have managed to restrict the movements of the terrorists. “We are closely monitoring the activities of the three JI members for possible military action,” Tanalgo said on the sidelines of the 113th anniversary of the Navy in Manila. He said one of the JI members believed to be in the south is Marwan, whose real name is Zulkifli Bin Hir. Marwan, reportedly a member of the JI’s central command, has a $5 million bounty for his capture. Tanalgo did not identify the two other JI members believed to be operating in Mindanao. He said they are continuously stepping up their anti-terror operations to thwart the plans of lawless groups. Meanwhile, the Navy sent off yesterday its newly refurbished ship BRP Emilio Liwanag to boost its internal security operations. The ship, which was provided by the South Korean Navy in 2006, will be deployed to Zamboanga and other critical areas, Navy chief Vice Admiral Alexander Pama said. It is expected to provide support to Marine forces deployed in the south, in line with the so-called Fleet Marine concept. This concept seeks to enhance the interoperability among Navy troops. Pama said the deployment would intensify the drive against the Abu Sayyaf and other security threats in the country. “It would be all-inclusive. It is for the ISO (internal security operations). If positioned in the south, this (ship) would support the Fleet Marine concept,” he said. The military has vowed to remain vigilant despite the death of Osama bin Laden, the founder of international terror group al-Qaeda, which has links to JI and the Abu Sayyaf. Bin Laden, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 US attack, was slain by US Navy Seals in his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. Some sectors have raised concerns that bin Laden’s death could prod his supporters to launch retaliatory attacks. Military officials, however, have given assurance that they are ready to repel such atrocities. Earlier reports said Saif al-Adel, a former Egyptian military officer, will serve as interim leader of the al-Qaeda until bin Laden’s successor has been named. Al-Adel is reportedly connected with the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the group tagged in the killing of former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. Philippine defense officials are unfazed by the new al-Qaeda leader as they vowed to enhance intelligence gathering to ensure that the Philippines would remain safe. |
‘War room’ redesigned for new battle
By Robert Gonzaga, Yolando Sotelo
Philippine Daily Inquirer (Northern Luzon), Wednesday, May 25, 2011
SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union – THE NAVAL Forces conference room is called a “war room” by personnel of the Philippine Navy station at Poro Point in San Fernando City in La Union. After all, it is where high level meetings and videoconferencing among top Navy officials are held, including perhaps those on threats to the country’s sovereignty.
But on Saturday morning last week, the room was full of children and their parents who joined another kind of battle—the one against the loss of love for reading among many children.
The weapons? Books given away to the participants, along with other gifts such as caps, notebooks and book markers by supporters of the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s Read-Along Session.
And the rules of engagement? Interactive reading by celebrity readers who hoped to instill the love for the written word in the children’s minds and hearts.
Lt. Rodney Cudal, head of the civil military operations at the naval station, and Ensign Edmund Aguila ensured that the program in La Union, one of the eight remotes sites where the session from the Navy headquarters in Manila was beamed through video teleconferencing system, went on smoothly.
Thirty-five children, aged 5 to 15, joined the session. Twenty-seven of them are children of Navy personnel at Poro Point.
The mood at the room was subdued before the session started, as if the children were wondering what the occasion was. The older ones fiddled with mobile phones, or whispered to each other.
Eager anticipation
But the mood changed into eager anticipation when the video feed from Manila was shown on the wall. Cheers and laughter followed as the children tried to follow the steps of “Achochechak,” a song and dance number meant to warm up the children for the session. The ice breaker was led by Alitaptap storytellers Rich Rodriguez and Percy Gapas.
It was all quiet again when the first story, “Si Pilandok at ang Kaharian ng Dagat,” was read by Lt. Maria Angelica Sisican of the Office of the Chief of Naval Staff.
All eyes were on the video wall that showed the book’s colorful pages, even as they listened to Sisican.
Hanna Borja, 12, one of the participants, was chosen to answer a question posed by Sisican, earning her a bag of goodies and books.
The children and their parents burst into cheers when celebrity reader, actor Dingdong Dantes, was seen onscreen. But only his voice was heard when the session started because the video feed flashed the pages of the book, “Lost at Sea,” which he read. The children, however, were all ears.
Dantes, a Navy reservist, read Raechelle Castellon’s story of a girl whose father, a seafarer, was thought to have been lost at sea. When the father was reunited with his daughter, the girl discovered his kindness and generosity.
The story touched the participants’ hearts because most of them are children of Navy men and women who are periodically sent on assignments at sea.
The visuals for the third story, “Si Hipon at si Biya,” written by Carla Pacis, were blurred due to a technical glitch, but the children enjoyed the story just the same.
In Zambales, over 100 participants, mostly Aeta children and children of personnel of the Naval Education and Training Command in San Antonio town joined the session.
Lt. Cmdr. Delbert Siasoyco, public affairs officer of the San Antonio naval station, took up hosting duties with Inquirer correspondent Robert Gonzaga and guided the children through the program.
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