. NEWS ROUNDUP .
MMDA sets launch of emergency
responder team
METROPOLITAN Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman
Bayani Fernando said a crack team will be created of "emergency first
responders" composed of paramedics, mechanics, and drivers on board motorcycles
that cruise Metro Manila streets to assist the public in times of emergencies.
He said the mechanics, logistics and unified dispatch
strategies for the initial 30-man team are still being discussed preparatory to
the project's launching on Monday.
Fernando said motorcycle-riding team members will work on
three shifts and work at reaching accident victims within the 15-minute crucial
timeframe critical to saving lives.
The MMDA emergency stations that will also act as dispatch
stations for the teams are in Nagtahan in Manila, Ortigas in Pasig and Libis in
Quezon City. Plans are also afoot to put up 10 more emergency stations in
strategic parts of Manila and in Balintawak, Quezon City.
The initial team of 30 riders have been trained in basic emergency medical
and mechanical functions including engine trouble-shooting, the MMDA said. Each
motorcycle has a siren, blinker, paging system, and a hand-held radio linked to
Metrobase, the MMDA's 24-hour command and control center. - Ashzel Hachero
Man sued over unpaid
Valentine motel bill
A MAN who had a Valentine date with his lover in a Pasig City
motel is now facing estafa charges after failing to settle more than P1,500 in
motel bills.
SPO2 Rodolfo Salamanca, case investigator, said Rode-rick
Rodrigo, 28, checked in with his unidentified companion at 5:30 a.m. at the L&B
International Hotel in Barangay Bagong Ilog.
Francisco Villamor, motel manager, said the duo even asked
for a three-hour extension and ordered food. But when paying time came, he said
the woman disappeared, saying she would be back with the money to pay up.
Villamor said Rodrigo tried to leave too but they detained him and waited half
an hour for the woman who never came back.
"Maraming beses na kasing nangyayari sa amin iyan. Hindi naman pwedeng laging
puro pakiusap lang kailangan siguro sampahan na talaga namin sila ng kaso para
maging babala pa sa iba naming customer na ayaw magbayad," Villamor said.
- Christian Oineza
Pakistani educators meet with
local counterparts
PAKISTANI education officials recently met with officers of
the Foundation for Upgrading the Standard of Education (FUSE) to observe current
methods and practices in curriculum development as well as the monthly workshops
for teachers.
Here upon the invitation of the University of the East and
the Asian Institute of Developmental Studies, the Pakistani educators had a
spirited discussion with their Filipino counterparts led by FUSE president Rep.
Salvador Escudero III, trustees Milagros Ibe, Dionisia Rola, Evelina Vicencio
and Fr. Onofre Inocencio, SDB.
The Pakistani delegation was led by Arif Majeed, adviser on
the curriculum at Pakistan 's Ministry of Education; and assistant educational
advisers Syed Tajammal Hussain Shah, Muhammad Nasir Khan, Ahmad Gul, education
officer Riaz Hussain and technical adviser Khalid Mahmood.
Taken up during the discussion was Pakistan's similar problem
with bilingualism in its schools.
The group also visited the Department of Education,
Philippine Normal University, UP-Nismed, Commission on Higher Education, Vibal
Publishing House, Seameo-Innotech and the Bulacan State University.
A second group of educators from Pakistan will arrive on Feb. 17 for a
week-long tour of the country's educational institutions.
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