DOTr Chief Supports Chavez's Legal Tussle Versus Buri

Wazzup Pilipinas!


Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade today said he supports the withholding of payment to MRT3 maintenance provider, Korean firm Busan Universal Rails Inc. (BURI).

Asked for his response to graft charges filed by BURI against Undersecretary Cesar Chavez for the withholding of payment, Secretary Tugade said he trusts how Chavez handles the rail sector of the department, and that all decisions of the latter were properly consulted with him.

“The decision to withhold payment to BURI is not a decision of Undersecretary Chavez alone. It is the decision of the Department as a whole. I support the actions of Undersecretary Chavez in handling the issues confronting the rail sector of DOTr. His actions were in accordance with my instructions," Tugade said.

Tugade likewise mentioned that if he had it his way, he should be included in the case since the decision to withhold BURI's payment was made with his approval and consent.

"Undersecretary Chavez always consults his plans and actions with me. His decisions were made with my consent, approval and confirmation. So, I should also be included in the graft case filed against him,” Tugade said. "Besides, all his actions are in accordance with the contract, equity, decency and law. All these are aboveboard and have gone through rigorous review and due process,” he added. 

The transportation chief noted that the withholding of payment to BURI is only taking into account “the good of the country and the welfare of the riding public.” 

BURI officials recently filed a graft case against Chavez before the Ombudsman after the DOTr undersecretary withheld the payment for the Logical Vehicle Unit (LVU) for the MRT Line 3 worth PHP4 million. 

The LVU is part of the automatic train protection or the onboard signaling system.

Chavez said he decided to temporarily hold payment of the LVU as he waits for BURI to furnish him with the Certificate of Origin and Factory Inspection Report attached to the LVU billing. 

BURI has acquired the LVU from Diamond Pearl, owned by the family of Marlo dela Cruz, while the manufacturer of MRT3’s original signaling system came from Bombadier, Chavez added.   

He said this is a requirement of Commission of Audit (COA) to make sure that the spare parts for the coaches are not taken from other train coaches.

“Pag kumpleto ang mga dokumento na requirement ng COA, binabayaran natin. Pag hindi, hindi rin natin binabayaran. Bakit kailangang masinop sa pagsusuri ng billing? Para matiyak na original ang spare parts at hindi rin galing sa “cannibalized” o kinuha lang na piesa sa ibang bagon. Ito ay para sa kaligtasan ng mga mananakay,” Chavez said. 

Regarding his actions to withhold the payment to BURI, Chavez maintained he is merely ensuring that government funds are spent judiciously on projects and acquisitions. 

“My decision to withhold payment is precisely to protect public funds. How can I be charged with graft when I am only protecting public funds and the people's welfare?,” he said.

NEC and Hortonworks Expand Partnership to Deliver Distributed Processing Platform for Big Data

NEC Corporation and Hortonworks, Inc. (Hortonworks®) today announced the expansion of their strategic partnership in the field of distributed Big Data processing platforms. The companies are combining NEC’s “Data Platform for Hadoop” with Hortonworks Data Platform (HDP^TM), powered by Apache Hadoop and Apache Spark, that allows enterprise customers to process structured and un-structured data on a single platform. NEC will introduce and market the Big Data platform solution throughout global markets with support from Hortonworks.

This strategic relationship between NEC - a leader in the integration of IT and network technologies, and Hortonworks - an industry-leading innovator that creates, distributes and supports enterprise-ready open data platforms, allows each company to leverage its core competencies and maximize the benefits delivered to their enterprise customers and partners. Through this extended relationship, Hortonworks will certify NEC’s Data Platform for Hadoop with HDP^TM as a Big Data Appliance which is build and optimized for Big Data workloads. NEC will leverage the knowhow of Hortonworks in the integration of Big Data as well as its best-in class Hadoop expertise and support services.

This partnership aims to achieve the following:

• NEC and Hortonworks will align engineering teams to verify HDP and incorporate use cases such as Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW) offload or Data Lake in order to accelerate the deployment of NEC’s Data Platform for Hadoop.
• Big Data technologies are changing rapidly. NEC and Hortonworks will strive towards enabling their customers to always use the latest Big Data technologies such as Apache Hadoop and Apache Spark and maximize the benefits derived from them.
• NEC will provide its clients with a high-quality Hortonworks certified platform to accelerate HDP deployment and enable customers to utilize the latest Big Data solution for their business expansion. 
• NEC and Hortonworks will offer an easy upgrade path to customers by providing pre-validated and certified upgrades of the Hadoop version in use.
• Both NEC and Hortonworks are committed to integrate their engineering collaboration and go-to-market plans and to expand this business into new and developing markets. The focus of this collaboration is to enable customers and partners with the latest use cases and market trends that can assist them in realizing their Data Driven Digital Transformation Journey.
• NEC provides enterprises with Hortonworks DataFlow (HDF^TM) and Hortonworks Professional Services in order to implement HDP and HDF, which enables customers to quickly create business value and successfully realize their Big Data vision.

“It’s important for organizations to make fast and informed decisions by extracting business insights from huge volumes of data. In order to accomplish this, NEC is committed to providing organizations with the best Hadoop platform for data management and processing. In pursuit of this commitment, we have established a Centre of Excellence for Analytics Platform and Solutions in India, which focuses on research and development of futuristic Big Data solutions and provides end-to-end sales and support functions to its clients. By becoming a Platinum reseller for Hortownworks, we are uniquely positioned to provide a certified Big Data solution to the market,” said Tomoyasu Nishimura, Sr. VP, NEC Corporation. “We look forward to extending this partnership to the next level to deliver more innovative solutions.”

"I am very pleased to welcome NEC as one of Hortonworks’ Platinum partners. I am sure that the certified Big Data solution stack of NEC’s Data Platform for Hadoop and Hortonworks Data Platform (HDP) will provide our customers and partners with leading-edge data-driven solutions and advantages to grow their businesses,” said Christopher Sullivan, SVP, Global Channels & Alliances, Hortonworks.

The partnership between NEC and Hortonworks was initiated in September 2015. Since then, the companies have collaborated on a variety of projects, enabling them to acquire key clients in the Telecom and Banking sector.

2nd German Film Week Kicks off Sept. 27

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The second German Film Week opened last September 27 with the Philippine premiere of "My Brother Simple" (Simpel, 2017) at the SM Mall of Asia Cinema 4. German filmmaker Markus Goller, whom the Goethe-Institut flew in especially for the occasion, gamely answered questions from the audience after the screening. 

Aside from the opening film, an interesting slate of films that presents the wide range of contemporary German cinema makes up this year's festivities. After its successful launch last year, the festival once again offers a diverse selection of films in its goal of promoting German language and culture. 

The German Film Week draws film buffs and students from all over the Philippines, as well as filmmakers, members of the media and industry leaders. This year’s lineup of films were carefully selected among the latest releases in Germany, some of which have already received numerous awards in international film festivals. 

"We are truly excited to unveil this year’s films and new voices to Philippine audiences," said Dr. Ulrich Nowak, director of Goethe-Institut Philippinen. "Whether mainstream, romantic comedies, or micro-budget indies, we made sure our festival attendees will be entertained and pleased." 

In addition to German films, this year's edition will also feature a film by acclaimed Filipino filmmaker Brillante Mendoza. "Captive," which has been screened at a previous Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale), will be shown during the week-long festival. In one of these screenings, a film appreciation session will follow wherein audiences will get to meet and speak with the multi-awarded director. 

"The Brillante Mendoza screening is an addition to this year’s program," Dr. Nowak explained. "Our goal at the institute has always been to promote cultural exchange between Germany and the countries we support. And this is one way to achieve that goal -- to share German features and highlight Filipino creativity." 

The succeeding film screenings will run from Sept. 28 to October 5 at SM Mall of Asia and SM North EDSA. Subsequent screenings will take place in SM Clark, Cebu and Davao in October. 

Tickets are priced at 100 pesos for all German films and 200 pesos for Captive. Tickets may be purchased at the cinema counters of participating SM malls. 

The German Film Week is made possible through the partnership with SM Lifestyle Malls and SM Cinemas and the support of the Film Development Council of the Philippines. For more information, visit Goethe.de/Manila. 

GERMAN FILM WEEK TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phmq-EclIBs