DOTr Crackdown Againat Corruption Continues, 2 LTFRB Employees Face Possible Dismissal for Extortion

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Two employees of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) are now facing possible dismissal from service, after being allegedly involved in corruption.

On 23 May 2018, the LTFRB assisted in filing an estafa case at the Quezon City Prosecutors Office against Jean Gunda, an employee of LTFRB-NCR, for allegedly collecting money in exchange of a taxi franchise.

Mr. Rogelio Colita, a taxi franchise applicant from Mandaluyong City sought the help of the LTFRB Main Office to formally lodge a complaint against Gunda.

According to LTFRB Board Member Aileen Lizada, Colita’s sworn affidavit says that Gunda promised to help him secure a taxi franchise sometime in April 2016 in exchange of PhP175,000.

“Although there was no written agreement, the complainant allegedly personally handed over PhP175,000 to Gunda in her office in Quezon City. But, after more than a year of waiting and constant follow up, not a single franchise surfaced, which prompted the complainant to bring the matter to proper authorities,” BM Lizada said.

According to Colita, Gunda offered to pay him PhP5,000 every month, but he declined as he needed the money in full. 

Meanwhile, Amelia Dela Cruz, transportation development officer of LTFRB-NCR is also facing a complaint filed before the Ombudsman for conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, dishonesty, grave misconduct and falsification of documents, and was directed to present her counter affidavit and witnesses before the Ombudsman.

A video of Dela Cruz surfaced extorting PhP250,000 from an unnamed complainant in exchange of a UV Express franchise.

LTFRB Chairman Atty. Martin Delgra, upon the instructions of Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, has ordered thorough investigation and filing of appropriate administrative charges against the involved employees.

“Patunay ito na wala tayong kinukunsinte. Mataas o mababa ang posisyon, basta may iligal na aktibidad, tayo mismo ang magsusuplong sa kanila. Hindi ako papayag na sayangin nila ang pagod natin na linisin ang hanay ng LTFRB”, said Delgra.

For his part, Tugade issued a fair warning not only to corrupt employees but to the public as well. 

“Dumaan po tayo sa proseso. Ang pagsupil sa korapsyon, two-way ‘yan. ‘Wag niyo ilapit sa tukso ang mga empleyado kasi tayo po mismo ang naglalagay sa mga sarili natin sa alanganin. Gawin natin ang tama. Paalala lang sa lahat: Kung ayaw ninyo kaming maging korap, ‘wag niyo kaming korapin. Doon naman sa magpapatukso, yariin ko talaga kayo. Alam niyong hindi ako nagbibiro,” said Tugade.

Paw-some! Araneta Center is Now Pet-friendly

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Already considered as the premium live-work-play community in the country, Araneta Center opens its doors to the cutest members of your families—your pets—as it officially becomes a pet-friendly destination.

Already considered as the premium live-work-play community in the country, Araneta Center opens its doors to the cutest members of your families—your pets—as it officially becomes a pet-friendly destination.

Araneta Center will be celebrating the paw-sitive development when it launches its Pet Pals program with a pet soiree on Sunday, May 27, at the Gateway Mall Activity Area.

Pet owners and their fur babies will be treated to an afternoon of bonding and talks on taking care of pets despite the owners’ busy schedules and on first aid for pets facilitated by experts Jester Jo Onchuan and Dr. Flori-Ann Buiser. A handful of cute freebies—including leashes for the early birds—will also be given to the attendees and their pets. The Quezon City Hall Animal Care and Disease Control Division will also administer free rabies vaccination.

Binibining Pilipinas Supranational Jehza Huelar and Binibining Pilipinas Grand International Eva Patalinjug will also join in the fun and share their fun stories about their own pets.

Now that it is pet-friendly, Araneta Center will start allowing owners to bring their pets to the Gateway Mall, Ali Mall, Farmers Plaza and other parts of the Center, provided that they have secured the Pet Pals ID.

Owners who want to apply for the Pet Pals ID only have to submit the following requirements to the malls’ concierges: original and photocopy of rabies vaccination record, 1x1 colored photos, and Pet Pals ID application form, which is also downloadable on www.aranetacenter.net. The ID will be given for free.

The temporary Pet Pals Day Pass IDs will also be available to those who have yet to complete the requirements.

Even after they have secured their Pet Pals ID, pet owners still have to be responsible in bringing their pets around the Center by keeping them on a leash while they are walking, carrying them while riding escalators and elevators and cleaning after their wastes.

For other guidelines on this initiative, visit Araneta Center’s website and follow it on its social media pages: @AranetaCenter on Facebook and Twitter and @TheAranetaCenter on Instagram.

CAPTION: Binibining Pilipinas Supranational Jehza Huelar, a dog lover, will grace Araneta Center's Pet Pals launch on Sunday, May 27, at the Gateway Mall Activity Area.

We Hate to Brag, But Online is the NOW and the FUTURE!

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Warning: "Yabang" mode in 1, 2, 3 ... and GO!

The blessings keep pouring in.

It's a daily scenario, but this morning is uncanny as we were swamped. Most of our emails were all about offers for paid article and link collaborations for Wazzup Pilipinas.

We basically charge a standard rate of $50 per article or link collaboration, and double ($100) if we are to write the article on our own.

Yes, we are like Chinese, we charge a small fee but our customers are plenty. We know many would charge higher than Mt. Everest, but we are modest enough to realize we are not full-pledged "influencers" influential enough to motivate people with just one tweet, or post, or whatever thingy that leads to a viral or trending fad. Sorry, but we're not showbiz material....or should we say, we don't run a "call center" campaign....We prefer to be real and organic, and focus only on our preferred target markets. The rest are just on a window-shopping spree....hehehe!

But one of the highest we got is $200 from a very generous client. Foreigners know the value of online presence, and unlike in our country, they may haggle but offer a fair price....and don't just give out a mug, or a notebook or a shirt to show their appreciation.

Many are repeat clients who already sent more than a dozen so far...we actually lost count already. Just as how we lost count of awards..Lol!

Seriously, online rules! For a couple of minutes of work, we get paid a significant amount already. Attendance to events usually requires us to spend more than what we bring home, but the real worth is gaining the holistic experience from the personal encounters. There are so much to learn and gain out there that we won't get from a press release sent to our email.

Like many are saying, to be invited to an event is already an honor. The freebies, perks, privileges, etc, that we get are merely bonuses. If you'll look in my room, half of it is already a collection of boxes containing what we got from our 5 years of existence. The only stuff we touch are the perishables and those that expire like food, and many go to charity, or to less fortunate folks we meet in the streets.

Our attendance at events are merely for our "entertainment" because we love persuading people do the iconic Wazzup Pilipinas shout-out, and find pleasure seeing others get owned by our aggressiveness or "ka-bibo-han"! Lol!

Of course that is a joke, what we love most is learning new stuff and sharing them to our readers. We're genuinely attracted to what we can learn from the event, new acquaintances for potential partnerships, etc, but more on what we could do for the brand or company.

Yup! Our craving for knowledge remains at a high because there is so much information out there that is ever growing at a "hyperspeedy" rate that we can't possibly catch up with this "undepleteable" phenomenon brought about by the influence of social media powered by the vast and global network of computers (which includes mobile phones) we call the Internet....let's just call it "online."

Thank you "mobile" and "online" for revolutionizing media. Traditional media may not want to admit they're going extinct like dinosaurs, but then you see them incorporating online strategies and investing more on related moves. Facebook Live coverage, hiring peole for social media and online content, YouTube talents, etc,. Evolving? No, they've gone online too before they are declared dead.

Online is the NOW and the FUTURE. Almost all the information we need is accessible through our mobile phones that could access the Internet.

We are glad we are among the pioneers that have already made a mark....and will continue to become prominent for generations to come.

#WazzupPilipinas #PambansangBlogger