MANILA: Following the bombings at the Boston Marathon last Monday that killed three people and injured 144, authorities have tightened security at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Pasay City. Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) senior assistant general manager Vicente Guerzon placed the entire airport security personnel on full alert and issued a memorandum to all concerned employees to maintain vigilance 24 hours a day. Guerzon said that all security officers were ordered to strictly implement access control, set up checkpoints, enforce rigid security screening and inspections, maintain security visibility and conduct mobile patrols. He also directed personnel to deploy bomb sniffing dogs in sensitive areas of the airport, strictly implement crowd control measures, intensify drives against illegal elements and activities to protect passengers, send off and welcome parties at the terminals.
Overseas voting in Jeddah put off
MANILA: The start of the overseas absentee voting (OAV) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, did not push through due to delay in the release of ballot boxes by Saudi Customs, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said. Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes said the ballot boxes were not released in time for the April 16 start of OAV, and he could not ascertain the cause of the delay. “Maybe now the ballot boxes have already been released. So as soon as ballot boxes, voting will start,” Brillantes said in an interview. To make up for lost time, the voting hours in Jeddah would have to be extended.
DFA monitoring US plant blast
MANILA: The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) assured that it is monitoring the massive explosion in a fertilizer plant near Waco, Texas, that killed an undetermined number of people and hurt dozens. Spokesperson Raul Hernandez said in his Twitter account that the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles, California, is trying to determine if there are Filipino casualties from the incident. AGENCIES
