AUTO BODY REPAIR TIPS

( November 25,2008 ) Compiled news article on-line @ Inquirer.net by Tonette Orejas, Central Luzon Desk

Subic ' shabu ' smuggling case not closed

Camp Tecson, San Miguel, Bulacan- A case involving the 4 billion worth of ' shabu ' (methamphetamine hydrochloride) into the Subic Bay Freeport in May is far from closed, the chief of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency said here on Tuesday.
Retired Gen. Dionisio Santiago said the case has yet to see closure as the main suspect, Filipino-Chinese Anthony "Aton" Ang, continued to elude arrest six months after he failed to claim back the contraband he had passed off as computer parts.
Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority police and the Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group discovered the haul in four batches totaling more than 700 kilograms. The biggest load was found at the Anglo-Asia warehouse that Ang rented at the Freeport.
" We haven't gotten Anton Ang. how can we close the case when you have not arrested the main suspect ? There's no case closed. We only discovered the operations. this may take years and the criminal csae may take long, Santiago said.
He also called as false the reports that Ang had been killed to silence him. " He's still alive, He's in China, " Santiago said, citing intelligence reports.
Ang, he said, escaped because the order to hold him came late.
" He will be mistaken if he thinks the PDEA has rested the case. Hindi kami basta tumitigil. Continuing effort ito [ We don't easily stop. This is a continuing effort ]. If he can stay forever in China, well and good, " Santiago said.
On the order of President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo, PDEA burned the shabu in August in a facility in Cavite.
Ang snubbed the efforts of Santiago to have him seek protection from PDEA.
SBMA officials said Ang used to operate a restaurant specializing in Chinese cuisine, sold that in 2004 and turned to the importation of Chinese liquor and cigarette. He and his family had resided in a village in nearby Olongapo City for more than a decade and had done charity work before the controversy broke out.
Authorities had not been able to locate the Vietnamese vessel that brought the shabu into the Freeport.
Santiago said reports received by PDEA showed that Ang is backed by influential personalities. He did not name them.
He describe the drug menace in the country as " terrible. "
" it's very difficult to eliminate this. [ The trade of illegal drugs ] is an international thing. kaya terrible' yan meron pa ring sinasandalan ang mga ito. [ the problem ] is terrible because the drug syndicate have protectors. Some who are supposed to be concerned and to be implementing the law are the ones who don't help out, " he said, without giving other details.
The supply of shabu in the country has turned scarce on the heels of intensified campaign against illegal, pushing retail street prices at P 10,000per gram, he said.
Santiago has proposed to apply the police's strike-three policy at the level of barangay captains. That means that in situations when raids on villages turns up positive three times for illegal drugs, the village chief would be axed.
Congress, he said, has agrred to increase PDEA's budget by 40 million from last year's P 600 million mostly for personnel services.
PDEA, however, only managed to fill up 800 of 1,850 slots this year for intelligence operatives and drug enforcement officers due to stringent selection process. The savings, he said, would be returned to the treasury.
" we're very careful in recruitment due to the sensitive nature of the job, " Santiago said, adding that more PDEA agents would be deployed to the regions in 2009.

( April 22,2009) In a related news column article compiled from the Philippine Star by Mary Ann LL. Reyes as stated:

HIDDEN AGENDA
Saving Subic's Image
As an economic hub, Subic cannot afford to see its reputation tarnished. Which is probably why Subic sympathizers are welcoming a forthcoming investigation by an independent panel led by retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Carolina Grino-Aquino into the Ang smuggling controversy.
Not only is President Arroyo reportedly very angry over the fact that Ang is still at large. She is even more angry that Ang was able to use the facility of Subic to operate his business.
It seems that there are two SBMA officials who would be in the best position to help the panel in its forthcoming probe.
SBMA chief operating officer Ferdinand Hernandez could explain how Ang was able to enter the restricted ship repair facility without being stopped by Subic security which is under Hernandez's office. It will be recalled that Ang allegedly picked up his shabu cargo from a Chinese vessel berthed at the repair facility.
The other issue that Hernandez's security men should explain is why they did not open Ang's cargo, giving him the luxury of a 48-hour gap in the investigation. Ang had two days to pack his things and go into hiding.
But it i

Palladium-Item on November 4, 2007:
Open house planned to commemorate 90th birthday

An open house is planned to celebrate Lucille Wickersham's 90th birthday.

The open house will be 1-4 p.m. Nov. 17 in the Reid Memorial Presbyterian Church social hall, 1004 N. A St. in Richmond. The family requests no gifts.

She was born at home on Nov. 16, 1917, to Joshua and Fannie Sharp of Williamsburg. She had three older brothers.

Wickersham attended Fountain City and Williamsburg schools before graduating in 1935 from Centerville High School.

She and her husband, Robert "Bob" Wickersham, were married 53 years before his death in 1991. He owned and operated Wick's Auto Sales for many years in Richmond and Centerville as well as a television repair and sales business.

She worked in the admitting office at Reid Memorial Hospital and was often requested by incoming patients. She was named Ambassador of the Month in November 1979 before she retired after 16 years.

Wickersham enjoys staying active and frequently baby sits her great-grandchildren, does crafts and loves to mow her own grass. She likes to drive her car, play games on the computer and travel. Her most recent trip was to Italy. She has long been known for her sewing, cake decorating and Saturday night hamburgers.

She has five children: Ron Wickersham of Santa Rosa, Calif., Larry Wickersham of Madison, Ind., Tom Wickersham of Granville, Ohio, Judy Redmyer of Columbus, Ohio, and Carol Gardner of Campbellstown, Ohio. She also has 12 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.