Friday, January 29, 2010

CHED yielded to our call, releases memo disallowing "no permit, no exam" policy


The Commission on Higher Education finally issued a memorandum on January 22, 2010, in response to the House Bill 6799 or the "Anti-No-Permit, No-Exam Policy" filed by Kabataan Party-list Rep. Raymond "Mong" Palatino last September 10, 2009.

This was after some officials of CHED attended a committee hearing of the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education (CHTE), where the bill was discussed. It was in the same occasion that CHED officials promised to release a memorandum.

The memorandum clearly states that "higher education institutions shall allow students with delinquent accounts to take school examinations," provided that they would present a promissory note stating when their financial obligation would be settled.

The "no-permit, no-exam" policy was implemented by school administrators to prevent students who have outstanding balances/fees from taking exams unless a waiver has been secured.

CHED would not have issued such a memorandum without the presence of a bill that addresses this decade-long anti-student policy affecting students especially those in private schools.

Subsequently, only a few days after the release of such memorandum, the Federation of Associations of Private Schools and Administrators (Fapsa) quickly reacted strongly against the implementation of such memorandum saying it was “not well thought-out and [one that] will surely render small private schools” out of the business.

The strong opposition of school owners was already expected as they had been successful in implementing such policy without CHED stopping them from doing so.

Support House Bill 6799. No to "no-permit, no-exam" policy.
Hb 6799 Anti No Permit No Exam Bill 2


Sources: Business Mirror, GMA News, Yahoo News, ABS-CBN

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Tweetdeck or Hootsuite?

I used to be a big fan of Tweetdeck. In fact, after having discovered the usefulness of it, I started recommending it to friends. At first, fellow blogger Kabataan Party-list Rep. Raymond “Mong” Palatino prodded me to use Twhirl, but I find Tweetdeck a better software. I even encouraged friends who were just starting to use Twitter to use Tweetdeck.

I opted to use such a software because I was trying to avoid Facebook. (Peace man!). This was the height of my abhorrence to games being posted on my wall, quizzes inundating my newsfeeds. I must admit, when FB was fast becoming popular, I was one of those who got really hooked. But an unfortunate event in July 2009, stopped me from using it for a month. I realized then that I could live without FB, haha! Thanks to TD, the propensity to spend hours facebooking has lessened.

With TD, several windows may be customized to show both FB and Twitter posts. Even wall posts of friends, shout outs, Twitter mentions can be viewed. You may comment to FB post right through TD.

But while I was writing this post, good friend-blogger Tonyo Cruz suggested that Hootsuite was a better choice.


Tonyo was indeed right. I was convinced. Hootsuite was a better choice. It works just like Tweetdeck minus the downside of having to download and re-install the latter whenever you use a different PC/Laptop. Hootsuite is web-based; there's no need to install the program; and it lets you post updates to your facebook, twitter, ping.fm, and even wordpress. Just like TD, windows may be customized to show FB wall, shoutouts, plus Twitter sent posts and pending posts. Cool!

Make your choice. My vote goes to Hootsuite.

Monday, January 25, 2010

CyberCrime Act of 2009: What a vicious way to start the year


The first day of the session for 2010 started with a draconian bill passing third and final reading at the House of Representatives (HOR).

The House leadership fulfilled its promise early this January that it shall fast track the Cybercrime bill.

That was Monday, January 18, 2009. A lot may not be aware but a draconian bill was being brewed at that time. After a few privilege speeches, the bill was deliberated at the HOR. The sole NO vote came from Kabataan Party-list Rep. Raymond Palatino, as house journal shows. One hundred seventy five lawmakers voted in favor of the bill, 166 were present. (As of this writing, other Congressmen and Party-list Representatives might have already submitted their “no” vote).
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Over the weekend, former Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Esperanza Cabral filed a libel case against blogger "Ella", who posted her personal thoughts and observations about DWSD's non-distribution of goods stocked at the agency's warehouses.

That blog post earned the ire of a number of people: from netizens and bloggers, to many other concerned groups and individuals. The news came as a brazen insult to the well-being of the victims. Many thought how shameless of this government, through its social service department, to hoard such goods when many NGOs, groups and individuals at that time, have been raising heaven and earth to get enough goods as it could gather for the countless victims.

What message does the filing of libel case against a fellow blogger send to us?

It is alarming that even at this time when the Cybercrime Act of 2009 has not yet been signed into law, we can already sense a crystal clear picture of how this bill, once signed into law, can be used against us.

From the way the bill has been railroaded, you can already draw conclusion that this will be used against those critical of the government – that to record, upload, and write about the truth has no place in the government that will use every possible means to hide the truth. GMA has so many things to be afraid of: from the Hello Garci scandal to the many other unwritten, transgressions of GMA.

It is already election time. Note that this will be the first automated election in the history of the country. Automation connotes the use of technology. At this time of tweeting, blogging and microblogging, the people were empowered to bring news that a few media outfits have the power to do so.

The CyberCrime bill will indisputably pin down on people’s freedom to use the internet to bring fresh news to the people especially this year when many are keeping an eye on the automation.

We can still stall passage of this bill at the Senate. Let us spread the news that this anti-people, anti-blogger bill should be stopped.

Related links: The Danger with the CyberCrime Act of 2009

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Call Center Bill: Understanding Its Salient Provisions


Kabataan Party-list Rep. Raymond “Mong” Palatino delivered a speech titled “The Call of Call Center Agents” on August 17, 2009. His speech was met with various reactions. It was a mix of accolades and criticisms for the young legislator’s exposé on abuses committed by Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) owners. His speech also presented measures on how to protect and safeguard the rights of call center workers.

Many were exuberant about a young legislator speaking about the plight of employees in BPO companies.

And yes, there were some who criticized. But violent reactions came mostly from BPO owners. And contrary to criticisms posed by some on the purpose of the speech, Rep. Palatino didn’t intend to present call center job as gruesome. In fact, Rep. Palatino just validated the myriad challenges call center agents deal with in their workplaces. These range from health hazards brought about by working on night shift to underemployment.

Rep. Palatino’s speech intended to raise the consciousness of agents on their labor rights. It was a strong statement, a call to action to the Arroyo government that the “sunshine industry” it so promotes and markets in western countries is not a very “friendly” job to the workers.

If you read through the speech, one would seriously ponder: “What can be done to protect their rights? What did the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) do to ensure that their rights are protected?”

Highly notable is the fact that just barely five months into office, someone in the House of Representatives stood up to speak for the voiceless call center workers. True to his objective, a bill has already been passed by Rep. Palatino, House Bill 6921 - An Act Ensuring the Welfare and Protection of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) Workers and the Recognition of their Rights as Provided for in the Labor Code of the Philippines. Read full text of the bill here.

Below are some of the points the bill wishes to address. Let me elaborate a few of these:

1) Are workers ensured medical insurance from day 1?
In two call centers alone, ICT and Sitel, trainees do not enjoy medical coverage as they have to complete their six-month training or probation period first before they are given medical insurance. Why is it that in other companies, as in the case of APAC Customer Services, HTMT etc., coverage starts from day 1.

2) Right to self-organization, to engage in collective bargaining, and to participate in democratic exercises.
What rights can the workers invoke once management and agent dispute arise? Is there a union in every call center to ensure that employees' grievances are addressed?

BPO owners have the leeway to exploit workers in the first place. There are laws which prohibit the formation of unions, disallowing workers from forming one. President GMA made sure that BPO owners will be delighted by the package the government and DOLE have crafted for them.

3) Forced Overtime.
In some centers, agents are forced to render 30-minute overtime work, which will be taken off their lunch break. This usually happens during queuing or peak hours.

4) Reasonable compensation
Some call centers give a measly P12,000 as starting salary, as in the case of Sykes; Sitel (P14,000), APAC (P13,000), Accenture P11,000. Measly as compared to what the company earns. Given the number of calls an agent gets, it is not reasonable for the company to give a measly share of what the workers worked hard for in the first place. The Philippines is among the top choice of American companies because the government 'boasts' of cheap labor.

5) Night Differential.
What is the standard percentage? Some centers give as high as 30%, others a paltry 15%. What does the law require?

The point now is, HB 6921 has been passed and will anytime be ready for deliberation. I challenge groups and individuals who are for the protection of the rights of BPO workers to actively participate once the bill is up for deliberation.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Get to Know the CyberCrime Prevention Act of 2009

House Bill 6974 also known as CyberCrimePrevention Act of 2009 is already on its third reading. House Speaker Prospero Nograles announced that this is among his priority bills. Given that Congress has less than 14 sessions, this bill may be railroaded.

Get to know the facts.

Kabataan Party-list Rep. Raymond Palatino stated that his opposition to the proposed bill is for similar reasons that he is against the Right of Reply Bill. “The bill may be used to stifle freedom of expression, speech and the press and may violate the people’s right to privacy. The definition of ‘cybercrime’ in the bill is vague and its scope overly-broad that it may criminalize ordinary electronic activities of any Tom, Dick or Harry who uses the Internet, a mobile phone or any electronic device,” he said.

Check out Kabataan Party-list's full statement here.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

My first trip to Vigan

Manila to Vigan. [December 11, 2009]

We left Manila at past 11 pm. From Congress, packed a few things, then off we went to the North Expressway. The farthest that I've traveled way up north is La Union, thus when the invitation to discuss at the 37th NUSP National Convention came up, I felt ecstatic.

The travel was a bit uncomfortable. In all of my past out-of-town trips, night travel was most preferred as I would get the chance to sleep. This time, sleep was very elusive.

We arrived in Vigan at way past 6 am. Whoah! I saw lots of old churches on our way to Baluarte. I learned that there's this village called Baluarte Subdivision. We almost lost the way. Thank you to the friendly folks who taught us the correct way to Baluarte. Breakfast was almost ready when we arrived in Vigan. We were greeted by several ostriches, ponies, lovely deer, and lots of birds. And yes, we're in Baluarte owned by former Gov. Chavit Singson.

The classroom discussion, where I was one of the discussants, had to be moved to a different slot, hence I had the chance to roam around Vigan.

Below are the pictures I've personally taken using my indispensable Sony Walkman camera phone.

Enjoy!

The renowned St. Paul’s Cathedral


Vigan Plaza Hotel


A marker of famous Filipino poet Leona Florentino


At the Pagburnayan (pottery making)
Vigan is boasts of its famous burnayan.



The renowned Heritage City







[More photos soon].

Another related article coming up soon.