The Ilocos Times

“At the crossroads , hunger meets hope. The hand that takes from the river must also plant for tomorrow. Poverty and sustainability are not two roads, but one path we must learn to walk together." (UNKNOWN) Can there really be a crossroads between poverty and circularity ? It sounds poetic—but in Germany, it’s becoming architectural, even political. Repurposing used shipping containers into social housing seems, on its face, like a simple act of reuse. Yet it sits squarely at that very intersection: poverty alleviated, and sustainability advanced at once. The question is: why should the government even care? And what kind of society are we if we don’t?   Why recycled containers matter It’s not a brand-new dream. German companies like Containerwerk have long converted used freight containers into affordable micro-apartments, using high-efficiency insulation and modular design. In Bremen, entire “container villages” have been built for refugees—two to three stories hig...

Laoag  councilor Jaybee Baquiran defends his measure during a regular session mandating the public telecommunications to install their cables underground. ( Doms dela Cruz) By Dominic B. dela Cruz (s taff reporter) Laoag City —The city government here is eyeing to mandate all public telecommunication facilities to install their cables or wires in a common underground cable passage. The 1987 Constitution declares that the State recognizes the vital role of communication and information in nation-building, while Republic Act 7925, also known as the, "Public Telecommunications Policy Act of the Philippines", also declares the policy that the fundamental objective of government is to develop and maintain a viable, efficient, reliable, and universal telecommunication infrastructure using the best available and affordable technologies, as a vital tool to nation building and development. Section 16 of the Local Government Code of 1991 (RA 7160) states, among others, that every...

Manila —Globe is partnering with Phil-Tower Consortium, Inc (PhilTower) to ramp up its aggressive network rollout in more areas in the National Capital Region and Luzon. Boosted by the Bayanihan 2 law which streamlined the permitting process, the partnership aims to install 500 new cell sites within the year.  Globe believes the partnership with PhilTower will boost the company's response to its customers’ ever-increasing need for better, reliable and accessible connectivity in the new normal. “Our partnership with PhilTower will help us accelerate our cell site expansion. Consequently, this will bring better services to Globe subscribers in more locations in the country,” said Vincent Tempongko, Globe Vice President for Site Acquisition.  PhilTower, on the other hand, emphasizes its role in advancing the telecommunication infrastructure in the country. “As a communication solutions enabler and digital infrastructure provider, we help power critical digital...

Manila—PLDT Enterprise, the B2B arm of the Philippine's largest and only integrated telecommunications company PLDT, launches the “MVP Bossing 2020” campaign to inspire enterprises to rediscover and reinvent their businesses today to successfully thrive in the future. Semi-annually, PLDT holds the MVP Bossing Awards to give tribute to the Filipino entrepreneurial spirit, celebrating local business owners who have achieved success, with the aim of inspiring others to pursue their dreams and aspirations. This year, MVP Bossing takes on a digital format given the impact of the global pandemic on social events and gatherings. With the theme "Rediscovery. Reinvention”, PLDT Enterprise aims to convey a message of hope—as challenging times bring forth the call to reinvent and rediscover—through the stories of previous MVP Bossing awardees and new aspiring MVP Bossings that have strived to recover from the current situation. "Through this campaign, we want to inspire all of...

  Senator Ma. Imelda Josefa “Imee” R. Marcos expressed alarm at the spike in cases of child sexual abuse online since lockdowns were imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Ms. Marcos filed Senate Resolution 487 to investigate how such cases in March to May alone more than tripled to about 260,000 from a year earlier, based on reports from the Department of Justice and the Department of Social Welfare and Development. The Philippines has gained a reputation as the “global epicenter of the live-stream sex abuse trade” and the top global source of child pornography, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The recent arrest in Pampanga of American pedophile Michael Kent Clapper, on a tip from the US embassy in Manila, is just one of many police operations conducted since the mid-March lockdown, with the Philippine Internet Crimes Against Children Center rescuing 34 minors from Luzon to Mindanao who were involved in online porno...

One-centavo price ceiling on SMS proposed Sen. Imee R. Marcos Manila —One peso is way too much to pay for every text message you send. Senator Ma. Imelda Josefa “Imee” R. Marcos has filed Senate Resolution No. 6 strongly urging the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to immediately reduce and set a strict one-centavo price ceiling on the “exorbitant” cost of text messages. “We must balance the business interests of our telco providers and make sure that they abide by the global trend toward cheaper and faster services to the public,” Ms. Marcos said. Although the recent entry of a third telecommunications provider Dito Telecommunity is likely to lower customer fees charged by industry rivals Smart and Globe, Ms. Marcos said that the public should already enjoy lower charges, particularly on the short message service (SMS) or text messages.  "Even if text messages cost only one centavo each, the three telco providers would still be...