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LINGAYEN, Pangasinan -- A cultural mapping program will soon be conducted in Pangasinan with the help of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) in order to identify local cultural heritage sites, art works, infrastructures, practices and the like that should be protected and preserved.

This was contained in Provincial Resolution No. ‎952-2017 which authorized Gov. Amado I. Espino III to enter into a memorandum of agreement with the NCCA and the local government units of Lingayen and Calasiao, designated as pilot areas for the project, as well as the Center for Pangasinan Studies (CPS), said Vice Governor Jose Ferdinand Z. Calimlim, Jr. author of the resolution.

The NCCA and the CPS will help each other distinguish, record, classify and analyze the cultural resources of the two pilot localities.

CPS Executive Director Perla E. Legaspi said the program is very important as it will enable the province to identify combined cultural assets and resources of different communities, which she added, will be empowered and involved in the process.

In undertaking cultural mapping, a range of perspectives are used such as mode of inquiry and a methodological tool in urban planning, cultural sustainability, and community development that makes visible the ways
local stories, practices, relationships, memories, and rituals constitute places as meaningful locations.

Legaspi said the Center for Pangasinan Studies initially came up with a shortlist of five areas to include Bayambang, Mangatarem, San Carlos City, Lingayen and Calasiao with the last two towns as pilot areas.

The project will be undertaken for six months per municipality. (PNA)



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ILOILO CITY -- The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) here approved on Tuesday an ordinance requiring food establishments to include half-cup rice serving in their menu to prevent wastage and give consumers more choices.

The food service industry here is given three months to comply after publication of the mandatory provision of the "Rice Conservation Ordinance of Iloilo City".

The ordinance is the city government's initiative to support government's "Be Riceponsible" campaign spearheaded by the Department of Agriculture- Philippine Rice Research Institute (DA-PhilRice).

Businesses, institutions and companies involved in the preparation, sale of meals, catering services and other related services that serve consumers, including but not limited to restaurants, canteens, fast food restaurants, cafeterias, carinderias or "turo-turo", are mandated to include in their menu the half cup rice serving. This should be offered as an option even on first serving.

It should also be presented as an option for ala carte and plated/set meals with corresponding reduction in prices.

The ordinance also makes it mandatory that the half cup rice serving be contained in the menu and made known by attending service crew, waiter, waitress or cashier before the consumer starts ordering.

Exempted from the ordinance are rice buffet tables and eat-all-you-can rice or establishments that offer unlimited rice.

The half-cup rice serving should not be less than the US standard measurement of one-half cup  or 80 grams of cooked regular rice. 

The Local School Board (LSB), City Health Office (CHO) and the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) are tasked to incorporate the ordinance to their feeding and education programs.

Violation of the ordinance will merit a warning for the first offense; fine of PHP3,000 for the second offense; and PHP5,000 and suspension of business permit for the third offense.

The ordinance will hold accountable the owners, proprietor/proprietress, juridical or natural persons for the failure to include in their menu the half-cup option and the failure of their service crew, waiter/waitress or cashier to inform the customer of their option.

To recall, Councilor Ely Estante, chair of the committee on agriculture of the SP and author of the ordinance, met with Myriam G. Layaoen, director of the "Be RiCEponsible" for the discussion on the passage of the ordinance in June.

Estante revealed that based on the 2008 study of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), every Filipino wastes an average of two tablespoons of cooked rice or nine grams of uncooked rice daily.

It is equivalent to wastage of more than 12 percent of the country's imported rice in 2008 valued at PHP7.27 billion and equivalent to the food of 2.5 million Filipinos annually. (PNA)



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PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan -- Police and anti-drug enforcers on Tuesday morning presented Vice Mayor Luis Marcaida III before the City Prosecution Office (CPO) for judicial investigation for alleged illegal possession of hard drugs, firearms, and incendiary devices.

Marcaida was placed under inquest at the prosecutor's office for violations of Section 5, Article II of Republic Act 9165 or Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002) for alleged "sale, trading, administration, dispensation, delivery, distribution and transportation of dangerous drugs and/or controlled precursors and essential chemicals"; Section 11, Article II of the same Act for "possession of dangerous drugs"; Republic Act 10591 (Comprehensive Law on Firearms and Ammunition); and Republic Act 9516 amending Presidential Decree 1866 for illicit ownership of firearms and explosive devices.

The beleaguered vice mayor, through a subpoena issued by Associate City Prosecutor Fritzie Baban-Subang, was ordered to submit within 10 days his counter-affidavit and other supporting documents for his defense.

Failure to submit within the said period will mean Marcaida is abandoning his right for a preliminary investigation.

The complainants against Marcaida were PO2 Suharto Pendatu of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Drug Enforcement Group (PNP DEG), Camp Crame; IO1 Jose Pocholo Barreto of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Authority (PDEA)-Palawan; and PO2s Mel Japeth Salmo and Junie Heredero of the City Police Office Drug Enforcement Unit (CPO DEU).

According to his spokesperson, Elmer Zita, Vice Mayor Marcaida's inquest did not happen until 2:00 a.m. Tuesday because his private lawyer was unavailable.

"We asked for 15-30 minutes for his (Marcaida) lawyer to join us but they did not allow our request. We had to wait until 2:00 a.m. because no lawyer in the fiscal's office was also available. It was a good thing that a PAO (Public Attorney's Office) lawyer came to represent him," Zita told PNA.

Meanwhile, the vice mayor showed no trace of hard drug use when he was placed under a mandatory drug test by the Palawan Police Provincial Office (PPO) Crime Laboratory.

"The drug test was done to check if he has traces of shabu, and he turned negative," said PNP DEG Superintendent Enrico Rigor, who headed the team that raided Marcaida's house in Jacana Road, Barangay Bancao-Bancao Monday morning.

Rigor added the result of the drug test will not, in any way, hinder the filing of the cases against the vice mayor.

Marcaida's bodyguard, David Gales, charged with illegal possession of an alleged unlicensed .38 caliber pistol, was allowed to post PHP160,000 bail for his temporary liberty.

At the CPO Tuesday morning, Gales said he would rather stay with Marcaida, than return to his home since "it's a safer place."

Monette, the vice mayor's wife who has stayed by his side since he was held under custody, maintains that her husband is not guilty of the accusations against him.

"We hope for justice regarding this because their accusations against my husband are not true," she said.

Marcaida remains under the custody of the CPO. He and Monette stay inside a small room within the Investigation Branch Office. (PNA)



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BACOLOD CITY-- Fourteen foreign buyers visited Negros Occidental for two days as part of the eight-day Philippine Travel Exchange (PHITEX) 2017.

Cristine Mansinares, provincial supervising tourism operations officer, on Tuesday said the delegates came to the province on September 3 and 4.

The visitors were from Indonesia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Dubai in United Arab Emirates, and California, USA.

Mansinares said the team were joined by four Philippine tourism attachés and directors, namely, Leona Nepomuceno for West Japan, Gerry Panga for Northern and Southern Europe, Richmond Jimenez for US Southwestern States and Latin America, and Warren Silo Palacio for Shanghai, China.

For two days, the group visited culinary and heritage sites in the cities of Bacolod, Talisay, Silay, and Victorias, and shopped for "pasalubong" (souvenirs) at the Association of Negros Producers Showroom in this city, she said. 

"After visiting the province, we hope that these foreign tour operators will include the tourism offerings of Negros Occidental in their Philippine itineraries," Mansinares said.

PHITEX is a marketing activity conceived in 1996 with the end-goal of increasing tourist arrivals in the country. This year, it started August 29.

Now on its 16th year, PHITEX is the country's biggest travel-trade event, hosting key wholesale buyers from all over the world for one-on-one business meetings with accredited local tourism suppliers.

Patterned after the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF), this event provides qualified buyers actual experience of what the country can offer as a tourism destination through pre- and post-tours.

Locally, Negros Occidental is the second most visited place by Filipino domestic travelers, according to the 2016 Household Survey on Domestic Visitors (HSDV) recently released by the Philippine Statistics Authority 9PSA) and Department of Tourism (DOT).

Topping the list is National Capital Region followed by Negros Occidental, Pangasinan, Cavite, Quezon, Bohol, Cebu, Camarines Sur, Laguna, and Leyte.

The HSDV, conducted every two years since 2005, gathered data on domestic and outbound travels mainly for policy-making purposes. (PNA)



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CEBU CITY -- The Cebu Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Office (CPADAO) chief on Tuesday described the shame campaign orchestrated by barangay officials in Lapu-Lapu City on Monday as intrusion of privacy.

Last Monday, Barangay Pajo and police officials headed by Barangay Chairperson Junard Chan and Lapu-Lapu City police chief, Senior Superintendent Rommel Cabagnot, spray-painted "Identified Drug Den Area" on several houses suspected of being used for illegal drug activities.

Ivy Durano Meca said Barangay Pajo officials should have employed a positive approach in their campaign against drugs instead of shaming people suspected of using prohibited substances, adding that these people are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Meca said the officials should have applied reverse psychology on suspected drug users. Instead of spray-painting "Identified Drug Den Area," the officials should have put on "Drug Free" stickers to encourage the suspects to change their ways, the CPADAO head said.

If the houses or rooms have really been positively identified as drug dens, then the police should have launched an operation against them and there's no need to shame the suspects, Meca added.

Chan, who believes that shaming the suspects will convince them to stop their illegal activities, said the campaign in Barangay Pajo will continue until the drug problem in the area is solved.

The Commission on Human Rights (CHR), meanwhile, also planned to conduct an investigation on the said shame campaign in Barangay Pajo.

The CHR said the rule on the presumption of innocence must be applied and that only the courts have the authority to declare the guilt of the accused. (USJR intern Levirose Caballero/PNA)



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PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan – More than 200 homes in a seaside village were gutted down by fire Sunday morning, displacing nearly 800 residents.

The fire happened shortly before 10 a.m. along Roxas Street, Barangay Bagong Silang, a Muslim-populated coastal village.

Barangay official Victoria Oblan said the fire victims were temporarily relocated to the barangay hall and nearby basketball court where they are being assisted by the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO).

"The number of houses that got burned is not less than 200," Oblan said, adding it is the second fire that hit Bagong Silang this year. 

The fire was placed under control around 10:30 a.m., according to Senior Fire Official Nilo Caabay Jr. of the city's Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).

Initial investigation conducted by the BFP showed the fire started inside the house of a certain Cris Danyo and quickly spread to other houses made of light materials.

Further investigation is ongoing to determine the total amount of damages. (PNA) 



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PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan -- Vice Mayor Luis Marcaida III, an alleged high value target (HVT) in the government's nationwide anti-hard drugs war, was arrested in a raid inside his home in Barangay Bancao-Bancao Monday dawn.

Joint operatives of the Philippine National Police Drug Enforcement Group (PNP DEG) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency Special Enforcement Service (PDEA SES) handcuffed Marcaida in front of family members after a search yielded 30 sachets of suspected shabu, a .22-caliber rifle, three rifle grenades, a fragmentation grenade, and four .45-caliber pistols.

Superintendent Enrico Rigor of the PNP DEG, formerly PNP Anti-Illegal Drugs Group (AIDG), led the 4 a.m. drug bust at the vice mayor's home along Jacana Road, Bancao-Bancao, this city, with a search warrant issued by Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 53 Executive Judge Reynaldo Alhambra.

PNP DEG operatives standing guard outside the vice mayor's two-storey house said he will be charged with illegal possession of illegal drugs under Section 11 of Republic Act 9165 otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

Bancao-Bancao Councilor Alex Marcaida, brother of the vice mayor, told the local media that he believes his brother is innocent of the accusation.

"Syempre nakakalungkot sa part ng family namin. Unang-una, bunsong kapatid ko iyan, mahal ko iyan, at naniniwala ako na hindi totoo iyong mga alegasyon nila dahil simula pagkabata kilala ko na ang kapatid ko. Hindi ko lang alam kung ano ang motibo... iyong... kung sino man ang may pakana nitong nangyayari sa kapatid ko (Of course, this is very sad on the part of our family. First, he is my youngest brother, I love him, and I believe their allegations against him are not true because I know him since his childhood. I just don't know what the motive is... about... whoever is behind this against my brother)," he said.

Alex said his vice mayor brother only has one registered .45-caliber pistol, while the .22-caliber rifle was inherited from their late father.

"Nananawagan po ako sa aming mga supporters na magdasal po tayo para sa ating vice mayor, sa aking kapatid pagkat lahat ng akusasyon nila ay hindi totoo (I call on our supporters to pray for our vice mayor, my brother, because not all their accusations are true)," Alex said.

Meanwhile, an obviously distraught Monette Marcaida, wife of the arrested vice mayor, said they were shocked when four men wearing bonnets barged into their house.

"Akala namin kung ano lang, nakita ng mga anak ko may mga naka-civilian na naka-bonnet tapos pinadapa kami lahat sa taas... walang kapitan, walang barangay officials, walang media (We thought it was just a minor commotion; my children saw men in civilian clothes wearing bonnets and then they ordered all of us to lie down on the second floor... there was no barangay chairman, no barangay officials, no media)," Monette said as she denied her husband is keeping drugs and guns in their house.

Vice Mayor Marcaida's name was implicated as an HVT after a recorded tape by Puerto Princesa City Police Office director, Senior Supt. Ronnie Francis Cariaga that mentioned him being such, was obtained by a local radio station and played on air.

The raid came following last week's filing of a recall petition against him by supporters of his former political ally, Mayor Lucilo Bayron. (PNA)



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LAOAG CITY— Mayor Rosario Chua-Go, one of the longest-serving mayors of Ilocos Norte, died at the age of 83.

Her daughter, Vice Mayor Gladys Go-Que, confirmed this on Monday and said that the mayor's body is still at the Christ the King Parish in Green Meadows, Quezon City.

She died in the evening of September 2 due to illness associated with age. Her body is expected to be airlifted from Manila to Laoag September 7.

In Ilocos Norte, Gov. Ma. Imelda Josefa "Imee" Marcos expressed her sympathy to the bereaved family and to the people of Currimao who lost a strong woman leader with a soft heart. For decades, the Gos of Currimao maintained a political stronghold in the municipality.

She served as a three-term mayor and vice mayor of Currimao town.

In 2016, she was elected again as Mayor of Currimao with her daughter and running mate, then Mayor and now Vice Mayor Que. (PNA)



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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — Controversial lawyer Ely Pamatong is "armed and dangerous" and has maintained at least 30 camps throughout the country, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) has warned.

Pamatong, a colorful political figure who has gained notoriety for his antics, was nowhere to be found when authorities implemented a search warrant and recovered a handgun and two grenades in his compound in Brgy. Tablon here last August 31.

Authorities had originally targetted Pamatong's cache of firearms during the raid, said Senior Police Officer 4 Noel Oclarit, CIDG chief investigator.

It was possible that Pamatong, Oclarit said, had been tipped off of the raid in his premises, and carted away the firearms together with his followers.

Because of this, Oclarit said they viewed Pamatong and his cohorts as "armed and dangerous" and that the public is urged to inform authorities of the group's whereabouts.

Oclarit said Pamatong's group maintains around 30 camps all over the country, "and they could be in one of those camps."

Pamatong, who was suspended last year by the Supreme Court from practicing law for two years due to corruption, is the leader of the "USA Freedom Fighters of the East (USAFFE)".

His antics, which included burning the flags of some countries he deemed hostile to the Philippines, have largely been ignored by authorities. Early this year, Pamatong declared himself to be the legitimate president of the Philippines.

Pamatong has been seen in public clad in military regalia, complete with badges and accessories. His Facebook posts also show him and his followers brandishing firearms.

Pamatong's activities have largely been dismissed by authorities as theatrics, until some of USAFFE members were arrested last month for trying to enter Marawi City in fake military uniforms.

Police said Pamatong allegedly ordered his members to "reinforce" government troops in Marawi City, where the terrorist Maute group has been laying siege for three months.

Oclarit warned Pamatong's followers they can be charged with violation of RA 10591 for illegal possession of firearms and ammunition; RA 9516, for alleged illegal possession of explosives; and RA 8491, for inverting the Philippine flag. (PNA/Jigger J. Jerusalem)



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DUMAGUETE CITY – The best high school students of five schools in Negros Island will be pitted against each other to win this year's championship title in the Battle of the Brains (BOTB) contest on the environment.

Geothermal power giant Energy Development Corporation (EDC) is the prime mover of the BOTB contest that is now on its second year.

It aims to engage students in environmental concerns, especially on renewable energy.

Mate Espina, communications consultant of EDC, said Monday the five schools that made it to Tuesday's grand finals are: Ramon Torres Malingin National High School - Atipuluan Extension in Bago City; Southland College of Kabankalan City; Negros Oriental High School in Dumaguete City; Bais City National High School; and Don Vicente Gustilo Memorial National High School in Cadiz City.

This year's BOTB contest saw 45 high schools taking part in the preliminary and semi-finals.

The theme for this year's BOTB quiz bee is "Renewable Energy for a Brighter Future". 

Topics during the BOTB Negros grand finals will focus on the environment, renewable energy, biodiversity, climate change issues and policies, and current events related to these topics.

Through the contest, participants and audiences alike learn about the benefits of renewable energy and its importance to the country.

It is hoped that the event will inspire the Negros youth to attempt to live more sustainably, and to teach and influence others to do the same, said EDC in a media release.

Up for grabs in the September 5 grand finals at the Robinson's Place Dumaguete is a Positive Energy BOTB trophy and a PHP30,000 cash prize.

The winners will likewise be able to meet and greet TV star Robi Domingo, who will be the special guest at the BOTB grand finals. (PNA)



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DAVAO CITY -- Former rebels in Davao Oriental are literally reaping what they sow in the name of peace.

This was announced on Saturday by provincial information officer Karen Lou Deloso, who said 17 former members of the New People's Army (NPA) harvested corn and other vegetable products which they planted last May.

Among the returnees, five are minors aged 16 to 17, and two are pregnant females aged 26 and 30.

These ex-rebels were sheltered at the Happy Home, a processing center and a civilian facility for former rebels who have expressed their desire to return to the fold of the law in Mati City.

The farm right across the Happy Home is owned by the provincial government and is near the 701st Brigade military camp. The facility will soon produce more vegetables.

Chief Master Sgt. Fernando Queza, one of supervisors of the farming activity in the facility, reported the former rebels harvested eggplants, corn, ampalaya, cucumber and okra.

Queza said that aside from planting, the beneficiaries are also tending livestock, a piggery with twenty piglets, and poultry of native chickens.

The livestocks, including the vegetable seedlings, and organic fertilizers, were provided for free by the provincial government's agricultural office.

Each of the returnees own the livestock and vegetables sold at the local market.

In 2013, then governor and now First District Rep. Corazon Malanyaon established the facility for the former rebels to install the pillars of shared peace and prosperity in the province.

Since its launch, the facility has been helping rebels in transition to civilian life. It is staffed by a composite group providing psychosocial, spiritual and other services.

Governor Nelson Dayanghirang continues to provide former rebels with livelihood and employment opportunities, scholarships for their children, health services and others for them to join in the mainstream society.

In a statement, Dayanghirang cited a big turnout of insurgents who decided to take the road to peace by pursuing political and social change without the use of arms.

The governor said he believes that the armed conflict can be resolved by building mutual trust and understanding.

He pointed out several positive strides that have been made in the name of peace, envisioning the Happy Home to be the beginning of sincere dialogue towards resolving the armed conflict without resorting to the use of arms. (Armando Fenequito Jr/PNA)



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COTABATO CITY -- A ranking official of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in SOCCSKSARGEN (Region 12) on Monday urged partners and stakeholders in a special anti-poverty program of the government to excel and get national recognition and honor.

Gemma Rivera, DSWD-12 Assistant Director, made the appeal after the region won four out of nine categories of Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan – Comprehensive Integrated Delivery of Social Service (Kalahi CIDSS) 3rd National Bayani Ka! Awards.

Kalahi-CIDSS is a community-driven development project implemented by DSWD. Under Kalahi-CIDSS, communities in local government units (LGUs) are trained to choose, design and implement subprojects that address their most pressing need.

Bayani Ka! Awards is an annual search for the outstanding community volunteers who are considered as unsung heroes for their extraordinary contribution and dedication to the development of their communities through the country's community-driven development program, Kalahi-CIDSS.

Rivera said that Bayani Ka! Awards is an expression of gratitude to community volunteers of the program for their contributions in addressing the local problems.

"Our volunteers are the life-blood of the program. They are our local heroes who are offering their time, talent and treasure without expecting anything in return," Rivera said. "They are worth emulating," she added.

This year's awardees from Region 12 include Bautista Agbay, 64, a farmer from Barangay Mabay, Maitum, Sarangani Province who was hailed as Best Community Volunteer for Peace Promotion Award in recognition of his volunteerism works.

Agbay headed the barangay subproject management committee and pushed for the "bayanihan system" in the implementation of 96 housing unit projects in the village, benefiting the poorest among the poor families living in coastal areas prone to disasters such as storm surges and flashfloods.

"Peace is not just about the absence of war. It's about sleeping inside your home feeling safe and secure. It's about having good relation with your neighbor. It's about living with dignity," Agbay said.

DSWD also won the Best Community Volunteer for Person with Disability Category through Rudy Mandiala, 44, a Manobo farmer from San Miguel, Arakan, North Cotabato.

His disability did not prevent him from doing his share and in fact inspired villagers to volunteer in various development initiatives in the barangay, to be actors rather than audience of development.

"Helping is not about tribe, status in life, educational attainment or disabilities. All of us have the capability to help," Mandial said.

Another awardee, Lolita Ruben, 56, of Barangay San, Miguel, Arakan, North Cotabato was recognized as volunteer in promoting the protection of environment. She was awarded as Kalahi-CIDSS Best Community Volunteer for Environmental Protection Category.

As a village council member, Ruben made local laws, resolutions and ordinances related to environmental protection in the municipality of Arakan.

The village of Tambilil in Kiamba, Sarangani Province was declared as this year's Best Barangay Local Government Unit for empowering ordinary citizens through direct participation in local governance.

Village officials allowed its constituents to identify their own community needs, as well as plan, develop, implement, manage, and sustain projects together to address local poverty issues in a transparent, participative manner while inculcating accountability.

Each winner received a development incentive amounting to P30,000 to fund their chosen projects in their respective villages.

Rivera said Kalahi-CIDSS stakeholders will aspire for more awards in next year's national contest. (PNA)



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CARIGARA, Leyte -- Puregold Price Club, Inc. is making an aggressive push to expand outside Luzon as it sets to open a new branch in this town by the end of this year.

Carigara Mayor Eduardo Ong said Monday the store is currently undergoing construction with a target finish this October.

The store will occupy the ground floor of a six-storey building that sits on a 1,000-square meter lot located in the town's central commercial area.

The upper floors of the building will be occupied by a local department store that sells affordable dry goods and wares.

Ong dispels talks the new store will pave the way for smaller stores in the town to die down, and instead said it will boost healthy competition and create a more competitive business atmosphere that will enable small and medium businesses to grow.

The new store will also create employment opportunities and stir the local economy as a whole, the mayor said.

Puregold's expansion beyond Luzon is consistent with its strategy to enter new geographic areas to accelerate growth.

Its drive to strengthen its footprint outside the Philippine capital and beyond Luzon is seen as a move to take advantage of economic growth in the provinces, according to the company website.

Ong said he is happy that investors are considering Carigara town as ripe for such a nationwide grocery-store and favorably considers the economic potential of the place.

Meanwhile, the mayor disclosed that more locators are interested to open new branches and businesses in the area; however, a viable location is proving to be a problem.

"We continue to help them search for a good location if only to boost their interest and eventually help locate in the town," Ong said.

Puregold now has two branches in Eastern Visayas (Region located in Tacloban City, Leyte and Borongan City, Eastern Samar. (PNA)



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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—The Department of Social Welfare and Development in Region 10 (DSWD-10) warned Monday, the selling of donated goods will be a ground for disqualification from receiving future aid from the government.

DSWD-10 issued the warning after receiving reports that some evacuees displaced by the ongoing Marawi City crisis are selling government-provided goods.

Oliver Inodeo, DSWD-10 spokesperson, said those proven to be doing so will be "immediately delisted."

However, Inodeo acknowledged that some evacuees are complaining of the "monotonous" supply of canned goods from government agencies as well as from aid groups.

To address the matter, the DSWD-10 official said the agency is working on a plan to hand other food items such as chicken, dried fish and beans so the evacuees would receive a variety of meals everyday—whether they are in evacuation centers or in their homes.

DSWD-10 Director Nestor Ramos said that while they "understand that (the evacuees) are in need of money that is why they are selling the relief goods, but we also have to realize that based on guidelines, selling these relief goods is prohibited."

Ramos said the agency is also working on a cash-for-work program to be implemented among evacuees.

"We are giving out P200 each day for 10 days for our internally displaced persons in exchange for work rendered like cleaning the evacuation centers, dredging canals, cleaning out surroundings, among others," Ramos said.

An estimated 300,000 people have been displaced by the fighting in Marawi, which has been besieged by the terrorist Maute group since May 24.

In the eastern shore of Lake Lanao, some 7,000 evacuees have difficulty receiving regular help because of access, logistical and security issues, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross. (PNA/Mark D. Francisco)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- An election official was arrested for violation of Republic Act 10175, otherwise known as the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, the police said Monday.

Chief Insp. Helen Galvez, Police Regional Office-9 (PRO-9) information officer, identified the suspect as lawyer Wilfredo Jay Balisado, 47, Region 9 Director of the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Galvez said Balisado was arrested at around 2:45 p.m. Saturday in Barangay Biasong, Dipolog City, Zamboanga del Norte.

He was arrested by virtue of a warrant of arrest for violation of Section 4c on online libel of R.A. 10175 issued by a Quezon City court.

She said that Balisado was released at around 5:30 p.m. Saturday after he posted the recommended bail of PhP24,000. (TPGJR/PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- Second District Rep. Celso Lobregat on Monday expressed support to the plan of the Department of Education (DepEd) to implement random drug testing in public schools.

Lobregat issued the statement after the DepEd announced it plans to conduct random drug tests in public schools, specifically for senior high school and college students.

The mayor, however, said the drug testing should be random for the students while mandatory for teachers, DepEd and Commission on Higher Education (CHED) officials to ensure the education sector is drug-free.

"They (education officials) must comply first to erase public doubts and to gain the trust and confidence of the students that their teachers are law compliant," he added.

He said the DepEd should also ensure that the rights of the students are respected and should be with the consent of the parents.

"This process should be properly reviewed and utmost consideration should be done, making sure that this will not cause psychological effects to students who will be discovered positive for drug use, the intervention and confidentiality of its results should be carefully examined," Lobregat said.

DepEd has allotted PhP39 million to fund the drug testing program for public school students and teachers that will be implemented in partnership with the Department of Health (DOH). (TPGJR/PNA)



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DAVAO CITY – Some 25,000 local, national and foreign Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts are expected to participate in the 6th ASEAN Jamboree slated from November 27 to December 2 in Tagum City.

Expected to join are Boy Scout delegations from 10 member-countries of the ASEAN. Other delegations from non-ASEAN countries like India, South Korea and Eurasian countries are also expected to attend, according to Tagum City Mayor Allan Rellon.

Rellon, who is a member of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines national executive board, said the city is ready to accommodate 30,000 scouts, about half of whom come from Mindanao.

The expected number of scouts can be accommodated in camps to be set up inside the sprawling Energy Park, the jamboree venue at Barangay Apokon.

He added that there city's hotels and private homes in a home-stay scheme can also accommodate officials and dignitaries, both locals and foreigners, joining and gracing the week-long jamboree.

Rellon is also confident that the combined forces of police, military and civilian peacekeeping auxiliaries and force multipliers are capable to give a tight blanket of security to the city and jamboree.

"With or without martial law, Tagum is safe. But martial law is an opportunity when we can tell now that we are more safe," Rellon said, citing the active security mode, checkpoints and army units surrounding the city.

Rellon sees the hosting of ASEAN jamboree to boost the economy of the city.

Along with BSP national president Wendel Avisado and other national executive board members, he recently participated in the World Scout Leaders Conference held in Azerbaijan last Aug. 13-17 where delegations from 169 countries participated. (Cha Monforte/PNA)



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CATBALOGAN CITY -- The Samar provincial government is targeting to reduce poverty rate from the current 49.5 percent to 30 percent in the next five years.

The local government aims to attain this through economic development primarily buoyed by Spark Samar campaign in partnership with national government agencies and private organizations.

Mario Quijano, provincial administrator and Spark Samar project manager, said on Monday the province has lined up projects focusing on farm-to-market roads, health, livelihood, agriculture and irrigation to reach the poverty reduction target.

"There is an integrated approach to development, which the government created for its implementation to be in unison," Quijano said.

The local government launched Spark Samar program in 2015 to spur tourism development with Basey, Marabut and Paranas towns as pilot areas. As of 2015, Samar's population is 780,481.

Quijano heads the project management office tasked to oversee the implementation of tourism-related projects, including evaluation and ensuring its completion.

Another strategy to hit the target is the emphasis on improvement of health services.

"We need a healthy population who will help us attain development plans in the local level. We need to bring health to the rural areas, to the poorest of the poor; to the farthest barangays and this is a big challenge for all of us." Quijano said.

Samar province is the 14th poorest province in the country with 49.5 percent poverty incidence in 2016. (PNA)



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TACLOBAN CITY -- The Leyte provincial government is optimistic of better relationships between the community and the police with the appointment of a new regional chief for Eastern Visayas.

Leyte Vice Governor Carlo Loreto is optimistic that Philippine National Police (PNP) Regional Director, Chief Supt. Gilberto Cruz will give emphasis on linking with the community, given the latter's previous assignment as head of the Police Community Relations Group.

"He was in charge of the community relations of PNP central office and with him at the helm of the police regional office in Eastern Visayas, there would be a truism in the police motto that the PNP is the community and the community is the PNP." Loreto said.

Cruz is expected to touch base with different stakeholders. In the process, PNP will become more relevant and more pressing issues and concerns will be addressed.

"Many issues and problems are solved with a closer working relationship between the PNP, government and community," Loreto added. "We are at an advantage because he is one of the closest generals to PNP chief Ronald Dela Rosa."

Cruz assumed the regional director post on August 30, replacing Chief Supt. Elmer Beltejar, who retired from 36 years of government service.

In a meeting with key Leyte officials, the new police regional chief vowed to work on projects supporting the rehabilitation of drug dependents, utilization of social media, and engaging the public to carry out development projects. (PNA)



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CITY OF SAN JOSE DEL MONTE, Bulacan -- Anti-narcotics police have apprehended three suspected big-time drug pushers in a series of buy-bust operations in Barangays San Martin de Porres and Kaypian here Sunday night.

In a report to Bulacan Police Director Senior Supt. Romeo Caramat Jr., San Jose Del Monte City police chief Supt. Fitz Macariola on Monday identified the arrested suspects as Rene Oliva, 39, of Barangay San Martin de Porres; Jaber Amparo, 26, and Airene Carreon, 25, both residents of Barangay Kaypian here.

Macariola said that Oliva is listed as one of the major suppliers of "street shabu" in the city.

He said the suspect was arrested after selling a plastic sachet of suspected "shabu" worth PHPP500 to a police undercover agent. When frisked, the suspect yielded 31 more plastic sachets of suspected "shabu."

In Barangay Kaypian, police operatives arrested Amparo and Carreon after selling a plastic sachet of suspected "shabu" to a police poseur buyer.

Macariola said police operatives recovered 11 more plastic sachets of suspected shabu with an estimated weight of 10 grams from the two suspects.

Macariola said drug pushing charges and violations of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act will be filed against the suspects. (PNA)



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DAVAO CITY -- A government official from Maguindanao, along with her cohorts, are now facing charges after they were arrested in a buy-bust operation inside an exclusive subdivision in Davao City on Sunday afternoon.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency 11 (PDEA 11) identified the suspect as Fatima Daud Baliwan alias Timaw, 44, president of the Association of Barangay Captains in Northern Kabuntalan, Maguindanao, together with her son Norodin, 28, car agent, and a certain Noria Diyao.

The suspects were arrested at around 3 p.m at Phase 1, Lanka Lane, Woodridge Subdivision in barangay Maa after selling three medium sachets, containing 50 grams of suspected methamphetamine hydrochloride, commonly known as shabu.

The arrested official is known to be the leader of the Baliwan Drug Group, a notorious group operating in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

The suspects will face charges before the City Prosecution Office for violation of Section 26 in relation to Section 5, of the Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

Aside from the penalties from the criminal charges filed against Baliwan, she will also face absolute perpetual disqualification from any public office if found guilty by the court.

A PDEA report released Monday said Baliwan and her cohorts were arrested for conspiring with each other in selling three medium sachets 50 grams of suspected methamphetamine hydrochloride commonly known as "shabu" with a street value of PhP600,000 to operatives who acted as poseur buyer. A cellphone and the buy-bust marked money bill were also recovered during the anti-drug operation.

The Toyota Grandia with Plate number LGJ 155 reportedly used in their illegal drug activities was also confiscated by the operatives.

Fatima and her son were already arrested by PDEA ARMM and Cotabato City Police Office last February 9, 2017 on Jose Lim Sr. Street, Cotabato City. But it was not stated what happened to their case in Cotabato City.

The operation was a product of more than a year of surveillance and information validation from the PDEA Hotline Numbers sent by concerned citizens. (Armando B. Fenequito Jr./PNA)



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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources-10 (BFAR-10) on Monday said it has yet to determine the cause of death of hundreds of "tamban" (sardines) that were found floating on a coastal village here.

Villagers at sitio Baloy, Barangay Tablon, said they started noticing what they described as a "fish kill" at around 10 a.m. of Sept. 3.

Rudy Gamo, 53, a fisherman in the area, said they were baffled upon seeing the dead fishes, which looked like white specks on the waters.

"They were glittering, but they were not moving," said Gamo, referring to the school of dead sardines.

Soon after, villagers said hundreds of dead fish began to wash up on the beach. By this time, people began to collect the dead fish and some even brought styrofoam boxes for storage.

Villagers from other areas in Tablon also came and joined in the picking of dead sardines. People living near the shoreline said they immediately cooked the sardines, either by frying or grilling them.

As of Sept. 4, village officials reported no cases of food poisoning or any gastrointestinal disorder from cooking and eating the dead sardines.

But Dr. Jennifer Marie Rivero, a veterinarian at BFAR-10, cautioned residents from eating the dead fish until the agency could determine what caused the mass deaths.

Initial examination showed that the fish appeared to be in good state and the sea water contained no toxic substance, Dr. Rivero noted.

"We would highly discourage eating the fish, since we don't know what caused its death," said Rivero in an interview inside the BFAR-10 regional office in Barangay Macabalan on Monday.

Rivero said a fish kill could occur by the change of the quality of the water, illegal fishing practices, and the release of sewage of manufacturing facilities into the sea.

The village's coastal area is the site of several factories, among them a corn processing factory and a dressed chicken facility.

Rivero noted there were reported fish kills in the past few years.

Nemfe Antigua, 38, a fish vendor, said she doesn't think the fish kill was the result of contamination of or any poisonous substances.

"If toxic chemical had killed the sardines, then those of us who had eaten it would have already gotten sick. But there were no reports of such. I even fed my children fried sardines," Antigua said.

Gamo, a fisherman, noted that since the operation of the manufacturing companies in Baloy, their catch has also dwindled.

"We used to fish near the shoreline, but not anymore. We have to go farther into the deep waters just to catch fish," he said.

Gamo and other fishermen have also observed that many of them had experienced severe itchiness, and they suspected that the water discharged by a processing facility may be the culprit. (PNA/Jigger J. Jerusalem)



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SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique -- The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) has identified Antique as the pilot area to host "Experience Antique Village" which will showcase the unique culture, lifestyle and replicas of various tourist destinations in the province.

In an interview Monday, Antique Governor Rhodora Cadiao said the project will be a small Nayong Pilipino in Antique that will be a show window of what tourists can enjoy in the province.

Glad to be the first recipient of this kind of project by the NCCA, Cadiao said she will be soon signing the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on the project.

Antique Tourism Officer Ramlu Villaluna said the NCCA will fund the construction while the provincial government will provide the lot where the village will be put up.

Construction of the village is eyed this October and expected to be completed in December in time for the Binirayan Festival.

A seven-hectare land at Igbucagay village in Hamtic town is the proposed site for the project.

To date, the Provincial Tourism Office and the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) are planting flowers along the roadside in the area.

Cadiao said she envisions a gemstone-inspired swimming pool will be put up inside the village for tourists. Gemstones are abundant in San Remigio and Sibalom towns. (PNA)



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COTABATO CITY -- Four drug suspects, including a woman, were arrested in separate anti-drug operations in Maguindanao, police said Monday.

Senior Supt. Agustin Tello, Maguindanao police provincial director, said a 32-year-old pedicab driver was arrested in a drug buy bust operation at 5 a.m. Monday in Barangay Buayan, Datu Piang, Maguindanao.

He identified the suspect as Haron Edza Ebus, of Buayan.

Tello said the operation was conducted in partnership with the military's 22nd Mechanized Company and barangay officials.

Earlier, the police received a tip from civilians about the activities of Ebus where he openly sold prohibited drugs.

Seized from him were several sachets of suspected shabu and a homemade pistol.

In Barangay Crossing Simuay, Sultan Kudarat town in Maguindanao, police arrested at 9 a.m. Mama Montani, 46, Sadam L. Montani, 27 and a woman named Naot Montani, 38, all related by blood.

Senior Supt. Esmael Madin, Sultan Kudarat town police chief, said eight sachets of methamphetamine hydrochloride and shabu paraphernalia were recovered from them.

Charges of violation of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 are being prepared against the suspects.(PNA)



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BACOLOD CITY --The Central Negros Electric Cooperative (CENECO), which caters to the largest number of electric consumers in Negros Occidental, welcomed the implementation of the Green Energy Option Program (GEOP) mainly to empower end-users.

General manager Sulpicio Lagarde Jr. said on Monday that CENECO has already been sourcing 20 megawatts (MW) from geothermal energy sources, but more renewable energy (RE) sources are needed to support Negros Occidental's objective of using clean energy.

"The program is very timely because we are about to end our 64 MW contract with Kepco-Salcon Power Corp. by 2021 and we need an additional requirement of about 20 MW," he said.

CENECO's coverage area includes the cities of Bacolod, Talisay, Silay, Bago, and the municipalities of Murcia and Salvador Benedicto.

The Department of Energy (DOE), through the National Renewable Energy Board (NREB), on Monday pushed for the implementation of the GEOP in a public consultation led by NREB chairman Jose Layug Jr. at L'Fisher Hotel here.

The program will provide captive electricity consumers the option to choose RE sources in meeting their energy requirements.

Layug said these end-users mainly include residential households with consumption requirements of not more than 1 MW.

"Through this consultation, we are getting the pulse of all involved stakeholders especially here in Negros Occidental which hosts most of the solar farms in the country," he added.

"We want to make sure that consumers would be able to choose cleaner forms of energy through GEOP," Layug also said.

The public consultation in Bacolod was attended by other DOE officials, officials of distribution utilities and electric cooperatives, and other power industry stakeholders in the Visayas. It was the first of the three consultations scheduled nationwide.

Based on the draft department circular prescribing guidelines governing the establishment of GEOP, the National Transmission Corp. (Transco) or its concessionaire National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) and entities duly authorized to operate within economic zones are entitled to participate in the program on top of power distributors and generators, ECs, and other entities to be identified by the NREB. (PNA)



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LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – The province of Pangasinan has a good chance of bagging its third Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG) award for 2016 following the results of the assessment conducted by the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

DILG Provincial Director Agnes de Leon, who accompanied the national evaluators in their last and final phase of evaluation last August 25, based her optimism on the compliance of the provincial Local Government Unit (LGU) on the core and essential areas of SGLG.

The province has a "clean data", she said.

De Leon said the evaluation was conducted by Local Government Operations Officers V Kenneth Tindungan and Erwin Gerald Fegcan, both from the DILG central office.

Pangasinan is one of the only two provincial LGUs to have been initially assessed as having a "clean data", said de Leon Friday.

At the same time, De Leon also expressed optimism of the high chances of 38 towns and cities of Pangasinan to receive also the 2016 SGLG award.

Component cities Alaminos, San Carlos and Urdaneta, chartered city of Dagupan, and the provincial LGU of Pangasinan are included in the initial list.

Only 11 municipal LGUs of Pangasinan, De Leon said, fell short of complying with minimum requirements for the SGLG award based on the evaluation conducted.

For this, De Leon commended the provincial government headed by Governor Amado Espino III for its well-crafted and implemented development agenda, and for helping out the municipal and city LGUs of the province in the planning of their development programs.

Under the 2016 SGLG, LGUs will be evaluated in three core areas namely: financial administration, disaster preparedness and social protection and peace and order; and in essential areas which include environmental management, business friendliness and competitiveness, and tourism, culture and the arts. LGUs were evaluated on their compliance with 58 development indicators.

Pangasinan already received its 2015 SGLG award last year under Gov. Amado Espino III.

Under the watch of his father, former governor and now 5th district Representative Amado T. Espino, Jr., the province also bagged the Seal of Good Housekeeping (SGH) in 2014.

SGLG is the expanded version of SGH which was launched by the DILG in 2014.

Assisting during the national SGLG assessment were: Provincial Planning and Development Officer Benita Pizarro, Provincial Administrator Nimrod Camba, several department heads and representatives from various provincial government offices and Pangasinan Provincial Police Director Ronald O. Lee and other executives and representatives from various government agencies. (PNA)



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CAMP GEN. ALEJO SANTOS, Bulacan -- Police on Saturday busted two alleged big-time drug dealers in a buy bust operation in Barangay San Vicente, Sta. Maria town.

Bulacan police director, Senior Supt. Romeo Caramat Jr., identified the arrested suspects as Christopher Dave Colangcoy, 31, married, resident of Barangay San Vicente, Sta. Maria, and Janel Roldan, 20, single, resident of Barangay Sapang Palay, City of San Jose del Monte.

Caramat said anti-narcotics operatives of the Sta. Maria Police Station headed by Supt. Raniel Valones conducted a coordinated buy bust operation against the two suspects.

Before the arrest, the poseur buyer was able to buy a heat-sealed transparent sachet of suspected shabu from the duo in exchange for PHP1,000 marked money.

Caramat said police recovered one big plastic bag and three sachets of small heat sealed transparent plastic sachets of illegal drugs (shabu) including the buy bust item weighing 500 grams with market value of PHP2.5 million; PHP 1,000 marked money; one caliber .22 revolver loaded with two live ammunition; one improvised glass tooter; one stainless pair of scissors; one digital weighing scale; and one bundle transparent plastic sachets.

The arrested suspects and recovered pieces of evidence were brought to Bulacan Crime Laboratory Office for appropriate examination while criminal complaints of violation of Republic Act 9165 Section 5, 11, 12 and 26 and violation of RA 10591 will be filed in court against the two suspects. (PNA)



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ILOILO CITY -- The recent neutralization of suspected drug lord Richard Prevendido is seen to reduce the drugs supply in Western Visayas by about 20 to 30 percent.

Chief Supt. Hawthorne Binag, director of the Police Regional Office (PRO-6), said they also expect a decrease in drug-related crime incidents in the region.

"Now that there will be reduction in the supply (of hard drugs) and the number of those who are buying, we are expecting that the trend in focused crimes will decrease," Binag said in a press conference here Saturday.

"When he (Prevendido) was still alive, there is already a downtrend in the eight focused crimes like robbery and theft," he added.

He recalled there was an estimated 60 percent drop in the supply of hard drugs in the region after suspected drug lord, Melvin Odicta and his wife Meriam, were killed at Caticlan Port in Malay on August 29, 2016.

Binag said Prevendido's death is not a reason to be lax adding that their anti-drug operations will continue as a new personality is expected to replace the leadership of the drug syndicate.

The neutralization of Prevendido, he said, gives the people more reasons to build a positive image for Iloilo.

"I hope this will help build a positive perception of Iloilo City, the province and the whole Western Visayas," Binag said.

Binag described as "mission accomplished" Prevendido's death.

He said the neutralization of Prevendido "is a product of our very good intelligence, the support of the community through the information they provided and the bounty."

The police's next high value target, he said, is Ernesto Bolivar, also known as Erning, who is said to be a leader of Prevendido's sub-group.

The slain top drug personality, who was leader of the Prevendido Drug Group, had a PHP1.1 million reward on his head.

Prevendido's son, identified as Jason, was also killed in the police operation.

"This should serve as a warning doon sa mga gumagawa pa ng kalokohan. Hindi namin sila titigilan," (This should serve as a warning to the criminals. We will not stop)," Binag said.

Law enforcers from the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO), Iloilo Police Office (ICPO) and the Police Regional Office 6 Intelligence Division, were serving a warrant of arrest in the suspect's house at Landheights Subdivision, Barangay Balabago, Jaro District in this city, when they were fired upon by two men.

IPPO director, Senior Superintendent Marlon Tayaba said they received a tip from a confidential informant on the exact location of the subject at 4 pm of September 1.

Recovered from the suspect's house were various firearms, ammunition, four laptops, a crossbow and sachets of suspected shabu.

Iloilo, the regional center of Western Visayas, has repeatedly been tagged by President Rodrigo Duterte as the "most shabulized" and "bedrock of illegal drugs". (PNA)



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KIDAPAWAN CITY –- The Army here said Saturday it foiled a plot by the New Peoples Army (NPA) to launch attacks in North Cotabato with the recovery of 20 Armalite rifles and two hand grenades.

Col. Harold Argamosa, commander of the Army's 9th Infantry Battalion, said military intelligence agents uncovered a plot by the NPA's Guerilla Front 53 to attack government forces and civilian communities.

Argamosa said the communists who ambushed President Duterte's military escorts in Arakan, North Cotabato two months ago belonged to Guerilla Front 53 operating in the mountains around the country's highest peak – Mt. Apo.

Col. Roberto Ancan, commander of the Army's 1002nd Infantry Brigade, lauded the 39th IB for the arrest of two NPA members, identified as Wowie Tagapia Boton, 19-year old laborer, and George Landungan Cuyo, 20, a farmer, both residents of Barangay Katipunan, Kidapawan City and the recovery of 20 high powered rifles.

Argamosa said his unit received a tip from an informant about two men suspiciously hauling firearms that were to be buried in the village.

He immediately dispatched a team of soldiers accompanied by police officers to the site where they arrested the two and recovered the firearms.

North Cotabato is celebrating its foundation anniversary with a series of activities dubbed as Kalivungan Festival.
Soldiers have been placed on heightened alert following the recovery of firearms.

Last month, the Army arrested a sub-commander of Guerilla Front 53 in nearby Makilala town who was keeping three M-16 Armalite rifles and bomb making devices.

Few weeks later, the NPAs captured Police Officer 1 Bristol Catalan in what authorities believed was retaliation for the arrest of NPA leader. (Edwin Fernandez and John Andrew Tabugoc/PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- Joint police and military forces are tracking down the whereabouts of a housewife who was abducted by three gunmen in the province of Zamboanga del Norte, the police reported Saturday.

Chief Insp. Helen Galvez, Police Regional Office-9 (PRO-9) information officer, identified the victim as Feroza Mindoon, 25.

Galvez said the armed men seized Mindoon at around 11:30 p.m. Friday in Barangay Malipot, Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte.

Investigation showed the gunmen barged into the residence, seized Mindoon and fled on foot under the cover of darkness.

Galvez said it was not immediately known whether Mindoon was alone in her residence at the time of the incident.

She said investigation is also ongoing in a bid to establish the identities of the gunmen behind the abduction. (TPGJR/PNA)



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ILOILO CITY -- Police Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido's reassignment in Iloilo City has been cancelled, the Western Visayas police chief announced here Saturday.

In a press conference, Chief Supt. Cesar Hawthorne Binag, director of the Police Regional Office (PRO) in Western Visayas, said it was "the decision of the national headquarters."

He said they have received a directive from the national headquarters of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Camp Crame, -- special order 9013 dated September 1, cancelling Espenido's reassignment to Iloilo City.

Espenido will retain his current post as Ozamiz City police chief.

With the cancellation of Espenido's assignment, Binag also announced that Senior Superintendent Henry Biñas, former director of Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office (Norppo), will serve as Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO) director by virtue of Special Order 9011, also dated September 1.

Earlier, President Rodrigo Duerte has ordered Espenido to be transferred to Iloilo City, the place he repeatedly tagged as the "most shabulized" and "bedrock of illegal drugs." (PNA)



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MAKILALA, North Cotabato -- A local official here said a locally-funded learning institution recognized by the Commission on Higher Education (Ched) can be an antidote to teenagers against joining armed struggle to fight the government.

Mayor Rudy Caoagdan of Makilala, North Cotabato, said the institution, the first locally-funded free college, will help discourage its students from joining the communist movement.

Ched 12 Director Maximo C. Aljibe said Ched, in an en banc session in July, passed a resolution recognizing and approving all the curriculum of Makilala Institute of Science and Technology (MIST).

On August 28, Caoagdan and Aljibe installed Dr. Gerard Rigonan as the first MIST president.

Makilala, one of the 17 towns of North Cotabato, has been listed as among the hotspots and breeding areas of communist insurgents.

"To discourage the youth from joining rebel movement, you must educate them and give them the information they need to be empowered," Caoagdan said during the investiture program.

To date, MIST has at least 1,400 enrollees and its maintenance and operating expenses are funded by the local government of Makilala. The local government provided an annual budget of P10-million for MIST.

The Ched regional director lauded the local government, headed by Caoagdan, for pushing for the establishment of first free college educational institution five years ago.

Caoagdan said a local ordinance has been passed to ensure continuity of the tertiary school and can not be disrupted by change in local government leadership.

He stressed that when he started the idea of coming up with an LGU-funded college, his political rivals criticized him.

The mayor said when he is out of office, the new official cannot order the school's closure because a local law exists.

According to Caoagdan, about 80 percent of high school graduates in Makilala stopped schooling after graduation due to poverty. With the availability of free college education, many are expected to become professionals and become productive citizens of Makilala.

"Where will our children go after high school," he asked. "Abroad as domestic workers? Construction workers or jobless or worst they may end up joining the New Peoples Army." (PNA)



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MAKILALA, North Cotabato -- A local official here said a locally-funded learning institution recognized by the Commission on Higher Education (Ched) can be an antidote to teenagers against joining armed struggle to fight the government.

Mayor Rudy Caoagdan of Makilala, North Cotabato, said the institution, the first locally-funded free college, will help discourage its students from joining the communist movement.

Ched 12 Director Maximo C. Aljibe said Ched, in an en banc session in July, passed a resolution recognizing and approving all the curriculum of Makilala Institute of Science and Technology (MIST).

On August 28, Caoagdan and Aljibe installed Dr. Gerard Rigonan as the first MIST president.

Makilala, one of the 17 towns of North Cotabato, has been listed as among the hotspots and breeding areas of communist insurgents.

"To discourage the youth from joining rebel movement, you must educate them and give them the information they need to be empowered," Caoagdan said during the investiture program.

To date, MIST has at least 1,400 enrollees and its maintenance and operating expenses are funded by the local government of Makilala. The local government provided an annual budget of P10-million for MIST.

The Ched regional director lauded the local government, headed by Caoagdan, for pushing for the establishment of first free college educational institution five years ago.

Caoagdan said a local ordinance has been passed to ensure continuity of the tertiary school and can not be disrupted by change in local government leadership.

He stressed that when he started the idea of coming up with an LGU-funded college, his political rivals criticized him.

The mayor said when he is out of office, the new official cannot order the school's closure because a local law exists.

According to Caoagdan, about 80 percent of high school graduates in Makilala stopped schooling after graduation due to poverty. With the availability of free college education, many are expected to become professionals and become productive citizens of Makilala.

"Where will our children go after high school," he asked. "Abroad as domestic workers? Construction workers or jobless or worst they may end up joining the New Peoples Army." (PNA)



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LAOAG CITY —A total of 2,000 scholarship grants were awarded to Ilocos Norte students on Saturday by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

During a ceremony held at the student center of Northwestern University of Laoag, TESDA Director General Guiling Mamondiong urged beneficiaries to focus on taking skilled courses as these are highly in demand for immediate employment here and abroad.

Aside from the 1,500 TESDA scholarship allocation for the province, Mamondiong added an additional 500 upon request of Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas of the First District of Ilocos Norte.

He added that TESDA will allocate some funds for the establishment of a dormitory for the Bangui Institute of Technology, where scholars may stay free of charge.

Mamondiong added that those who come from remote areas will no longer have to shell out money for transportation expenses during the course of the training.

An earlier survey showed graduates of TESDA were able to get employment within a year unlike college graduates who may take an average of three years before getting employed.

Under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, TESDA is also mandated to facilitate immediate employment of graduates.

"After the graduation of scholarship beneficiaries, aalamin din namin kung kayo ay umunlad na. Kasi ang bagong mandato ng TESDA ngayon ay sumusuporta sa ating pangulong Duterte na may malasakit at pagbabago," Mamondiong said.

One of TESDA scholar-graduates, Gilbert Domingo, a holder of Housekeeping National Certificate II, said he is grateful for the opportunity given him as he is now reaping the fruits of his sacrifices.

"I am thankful to TESDA and to all my instructors for trusting me and for pushing me to do my best," said Domingo.

He urged other scholars to study hard and to never give up in times of difficulties. (PNA)

 



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PARANG, Maguindanao -- Acting on tips from civilians, the police here arrested Saturday in an island barangay two siblings who shot to death their stepmother Tuesday.

Chief Insp. Erwin Tabora, Parang town police chief, identified the suspects as Sammy and Deding Aragasi who sought refuge in Barangay Tucamaro, Brangay Bongo Island, after they allegedly opened fire on Hadja Langgui Aragasi, 33, public school teacher and second wife of their father, Barangay Tucamaro chair Kagi Aragasi.

Tabora said the suspects are Kagi's sons from his first marriage.

Tabora said police investigators are still awaiting statements from the village official as to the motive of the attack. Police are giving the family privacy as they grieve, Tabora said. (PNA)



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ILOILO CITY -- Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog on Saturday commended the police in Western Visayas for the successful neutralization of suspected top drug lord Richard Prevendido.

In a statement, Mabilog recognized the efforts of all the police forces from the regional, provincial and city offices, who patiently pursued leads and tips on the whereabouts of Prevendido for more than a year.

"This legitimate police operation is proof that our local law enforcers are committed to bring order and justice in Western Visayas, and Iloilo City in particular," he said.

"We hope that with Prevendido gone, the illegal drug problem will be entirely minimized if not eliminated. But this will not mean we will be complacent. The Iloilo City Government together with the PNP (Philippine National Police) and the PDEA (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency) will continue with the war on illegal drugs, and will not stop until the battle is won," he added.

The mayor also ordered to expedite the release of PHP500,000 bounty earlier committed by the city government to the person who will provide information on the whereabouts of Prevendido.

Mabilog added that "Prevendido's death is an exclamation point that will put an end to the era of illegal drugs in Iloilo City."

He expressed hope that the drug problem brought by Prevendido will no longer be repeated. (PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has earmarked additional P500 million budget to speed up the construction of the 14-kilometer highway in the east coast of this city.

Zamboanga 2nd District Rep. Manuel Jose Dalipe II on Saturday said the amount has been included in the 2018 General Appropriations Act with the representation made by DPWH Sec. Mark Villar.

The road project covers Barangays Cabaluay, Mercedes, Talabaan, and Zambowood. A bridge will also be constructed in Zambowood to connect the highway to Barangay Mampang.

The national government has initially allocated this year P150 million for the acquisition of the road right-of-way.

Dalipe initiated the road project to hasten development in the east coast as well as to help decongest traffic in this city.

It is also in preparation for the transfer of the Zamboanga International Airport from Sta. Maria to Mercedes. (PNA)



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LINGAYEN, Pangasinan -- A plastic container with more or less 20 kilos of suspected methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu was found floating by fishermen in mid-sea here on August 27. 

The fishermen, upon their return to their home port, turned over the suspicious find to Barangay Chairman Charlito Maniago of Cato, Infanta, Pangasinan.

The village chief then turned over the suspected drugs to the Infanta police.

According to the Pangasinan Police Provincial Office (PPPO), the plastic container was found by Juriel Murcia, Junreh Labesores, David Guatno and Javito Salvador, all of Barangay Cato, Infanta, while fishing in the West Philippine Sea area.

The four said they found the plastic container floating in the waters between the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union while on board their fishing vessel.

The container was subsequently turned over Friday to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) through Agent Dexter Asayco for proper disposition.

The turnover was witnessed by Infanta Mayor Marvin Martinez, Supt, Marlon Canam, deputy police provincial director for administration, and elements of the Police Intelligence branch, Provincial Public Safety Company and other police units. (PNA)



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BACOLOD CITY -- As a result of aggressive measures in pursuing evaders, the Social Security System (SSS) has monitored high compliance rate in terms of employer contribution in Negros Occidental.

This was noted by Helen Solito, SSS Visayas Operations Group senior vice president, during the opening program of the five-day 60th Anniversary Exhibit of the agency at SM City Bacolod on Friday.

Solito, however, called on employers to regularly remit the contributions of their workers as there are still delinquencies in the contribution of payments in the Visayas.

"Let us be partners in providing protection to the members," Solito urged employers.

She said the SSS is intensifying efforts to increase collections through improved compliance rate among the employers. Account officers check the records of companies to determine underpayments, she added.

In the Visayas, the SSS has 26 branches, including nine in Negros Island under Visayas West 1.

These are located in the cities of Bacolod, Bago, Kabankalan, Sagay, Victorias and San Carlos in Negros Occidental; and the cities of Bais and Dumaguete in Negros Oriental.

Data from 2016 showed there are at least 1.8 million SSS members in Negros Occidental, mostly covered by SSS Bacolod Branch with registrants from the cities of Bacolod, Talisay and Silay.

The agency's 60th anniversary celebration is themed "SSS: Anim na Dekadang Sinisiguro ang Kinabukasan ng bawat Miyembro."(PNA)



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LAOAG CITY -- Quality products from the north are among the biggest hit again at the 28th Philippines Travel Mart Expo at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, Metro Manila.

Aian Raquel, head of the Ilocos Norte Tourism Office, said the Ilocos Norte booth is a constant head-turner worthy of Instagram and other social media posting as it features the best travel deals and all new products and services of the province.

Raquel said this year's booth entry was conceptualized by set designer Ohm David, inspired by Ilocos Norte's popular landmark particularly the UNESCO-World Heritage site of St. Augustine Church in Paoay town and the sand dunes.

Held on September 1-3, the event showcases products like airways, tourism packages, travel care services, to that of resorts, and transportation facilities associated in travel and tourism industry.

Like in previous years, Ilocos Norte products featured in this event continue to attract tourists to visit Ilocos Norte with 555,176 recorded visitor arrivals in 2016 or a growth rate of 79 percent compared  to 2015.

Organized by the Philippine Tour Operators in partnership with the Department of Tourism (DOT), Raquel said the event is a good venue to present the province as a major tourist destination.

Of the more than 2 million tourists that visited Region 1 last year, records from the Department of Tourism showed that Ilocos Norte has the highest response rate from advertisement or product
promotions.

Aside from domestic arrivals, its top foreign market includes China, United States of America, Canada, South Korea and Australia, among others.

Ilocos Norte is among the top 10 tourist destinations in the country, favored for its pristine beaches, rich culture and heritage, gastronomic delights, water and land sports adventure and geological wonders that can be easily reached by land or by air. (PNA)



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DAGUPAN CITY -- The contents of a plastic container, which was found by four fishermen from Infanta town floating in mid-sea last Aug. 27, do not contain methamphetamine hydrochloride, police said.

A report early Sunday by Bombo Radyo Dagupan, quoted Chief Inspector Manuel Garcia Jr., chief of police of Infanta, that he received a call from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Pangasinan informing him that based on laboratory test results, the contents of the plastic container was negative of methamphetamine hydrochloride and of other substances used in making shabu.

Garcia turned over Friday the container and its contents to PDEA Pangasinan Agent Dexter Asayco in the presence of Infanta Mayor Marvin Martinez, Supt. Marlon Canam, police deputy provincial director for administration, policemen from the intelligence branch, among others.

The container and its contents will still be sent to PDEA Manila for further confirmatory tests.

Fishermen found a gray plastic container floating somewhere in the waters off the boundary of Pangasinan and La Union while fishing.

Upon reaching their home port of Cato in Infanta town, the fishermen immediately reported the matter to Barangay Captain Charlito Manigo of Cato, who immediately called the Infanta police. (PNA)



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DAVAO CITY – If he has an advice to son Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte and son-in-law Atty. Manases "Mans" Carpio, President Rodrigo Duterte would want the two to appear before the Senate if invited to the hearings on alleged corruption at the Bureau of Customs (BOC).

Duterte, a trial lawyer for many years, however, hinted it would be a futile exercise because the vice mayor and Carpio can always invoke their right to silence.

The President said the two can even go to court if they are cited for contempt for failure to answer questions in the Senate investigation.

"Ako, ang advice ko kay Pulong? "Punta ka doon, then pagdating mo and he questions, sabihin mo lang na, I will not answer you, I'm invoking my right of silence kasi nung eleksyon pa, hindi pa Presidente ang tatay ko, binibira mo na kami (For me my advice to Pulong? Go there, if you're there and he (Senator Antonio Trillanes) questions, just say, I will not answer you, I'm invoking my right of silence because since election, before my father became president, you were already hitting us)," Duterte said when asked by reporters what advice he would give Paolo and Carpio if they are invited by the Senate.

"Ang isagot sa iyo, 'I will refuse to answer your questions because it will intend to incriminate me', " Duterte stressed.

Duterte pointed out Trillanes already assumed for the longest time that Paolo and Carpio are behind the so-called Davao group linked to BOC's smuggling and 'tara' system.

Calling Trillanes as idiot with an IQ rate of six, Duterte dared the senator to get his own evidence instead of relying on other people's statements.

"So if you want evidence, Mr. Trililing, do not get it from the mouth of other people. Go somewhere else. Yung tinitira mo, gusto mo ring ipitin. Hindi ka abogado, hindi ka marunong niyan (Those you are hitting, you also want to pin down. You are not a lawyer, you do not know about it)," he said.

Duterte said Trillanes cannot punish a person or take any inference when a person invokes a constitutional right. Trillanes, Duterte said, is just on fishing expedition.

Trillanes should not get information from someone's mouth if he wants to know something. "Di maghanap ka kung saan mo hanapin. Kung totoo talaga 'yan (Then you look for it. If that is really true)," he added.

Eariler, Carpio said Trillanes is a "desperate rumor-monger," who happens to be a senator. Carpio admitted to have visited BoC because he represents many clients, who have transactions with the agency.

"I represent many clients who have transactions with the Bureau of Customs. It is my job as a lawyer to appear before government agencies for and on behalf of my principals," Carpio said in a statement posted on his Facebook account.

"Senator Trillanes is imputing malice in saying that my appearance before the BOC is because of smuggling. He is just a desperate rumor-monger who happens to be a senator. #desperado," Carpio added. (PNA)



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DAVAO CITY – President Rodrigo Duterte will meet with the leaders of Malaysia and Indonesia to formalize the details of an anti-terrorism deal.

In a media interview past midnight Sunday, the President also voiced concern over reports of increasing ISIS recruitment in Muslim cities.

"The ISIS is being cornered into the coastal towns of Syria. Natutulak na sila sa Syria. Once they lose mass base, wala na silang mapuntahan. Papatayin talaga sila. Alam mo na ang Arabo, they execute. Sisibat na 'yan. And then because they have access in some countries, bigla na lang sisipot kagaya nung sa Marawi (They are being pushed (out) of Syria. Once they lose mass base, they can't go anywhere. They will really be killed. You know the Arabs, they execute. They will escape. And then...because they have access in some countries, they will just come just like in Marawi)," Duterte said on the sidelines of the birthday celebration of Davao City Rep. Karlo Nograles.

Duterte said he, Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak already agreed to meet either in an area near the Philippines like Sabah and Jakarta.

"We have agreed that we will talk, the three of us. So naghintay lang kami ng timing (We are just waiting for the right timing)," he said in an interview with reporters.

In all probability, Duterte said the deal could be a joint undertaking like a task force to run after ISIS members.

"I will open my borders to the Malaysian authorities and Indonesian authorities, and I am --- they'll be given access," he said.

"Kung may hinahabol kami, tapos sabihin, malakas 'yan, wala nang panahon, tirahin mo na lang siya. Even if it's a Filipino, sabihin mo doon sa [inaudible], "Tirahin mo na." or Indonesian dito (If we are running after (terrorists), then they say these are strong and we lack the time, just hit on them. Even if it's Filipino...or Indonesian here (in the Philippines)," he stressed.

The President said the meeting is already being worked out and it only needs to be formalized.

"We have to meet face to face and agree on an agenda for the talks," he added.

"I can only maybe... be there for about a day or two. At this time, I cannot. I do not have the luxury of time because I have a serious problem here," he added.

Duterte said he has to visit Marawi more often until the crisis is over.

Meanwhile, Duterte said he is also looking at the situation in other parts of Mindanao like in Buldon, Maguindanao where there are skirmishes everyday.

"I don't know how this thing developed but anyway I have that by the end of the year to contain all of these things," he said.

During the Eastern Mindanao Command's 11th anniversary in Davao City on Friday, Duterte said he was thinking of lifting the Martial Law.

"But the way it looks, parang may spillover na sa ARMM. Sa Buldon (it looks like there's a spillover in the ARMM. In Buldon), he said referring to Buldon town in Maguindanao.

"Let us see. If it is to the interest of the country that I will lift it, I will lift it. But if not, then we'll just have to continue with the martial law," he added.

Duterte, however, assured he would be pursuing the peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and even with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).

"If we cannot reconfigure a political structure to suit everybody's needs and fulfill their demands because it is really valid, Mindanao will be at war for all times," he added. (PNA)



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TACLOBAN CITY -- Muslims who fled the war-torn Marawi City observed Eid'l Adha with a special prayer -- to return home.

About 30 internally-displaced persons (IDPs) from Marawi joined a simple Eid'l Adha celebration with Tacloban-based Muslims on Friday, offering prayers inside a mosque and joining a feast at the Leyte National Gymnasium.

Local government officials and some individuals donated food for the feast.

Young mother Farhanah Jamel, 26, said they were praying for the end of war in Marawi -- for them to be able to return home and start anew.

Her husband, who used to be a businessman before the war, was hired to do clerical jobs by the city government.

"Back in Marawi, we're the one sharing food with others, but now we are struggling to buy food daily to survive," Jamel shared.

The evacuees, composed of eight families, are temporarily staying in a village hall in Sagkahan district. They are getting support from the city government, the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and some private donors.

They have relatives who are based in Tacloban.

"Because of this war, sometimes we ask ourselves if we are really sinners for us to suffer this consequence. Despite hardship, we are thankful that Allah has been guiding us," Jamel said.

Another IDP Nor-ain Radia, 21, was sad that her education has been interrupted bu the terror attack.

"I want to finish my studies and graduate, but the problem is that I don't have money to support myself," said Radia, a graduating nursing student of SMD Foundation Academy in Marawi City.

Radia travelled to this city with her relatives two months ago as condition at the evacuation center in Marawi worsened.

Her parents, who are into rice milling business, have been trapped inside the war-torn city. She has lost contact with them since.

"I'm praying that the war will end soon so we can go back to our village and see if our parents are still there," Radia said.

The city government of Tacloban has given the evacuees training on food preparation and marketing. Their delicacies are now being sold in a number of restaurants in the city.

For the evacuees, observing Eid'l Adha is a way to remember their sacrifices, resilience, and the generosity of others in the midst of war in their home city.

Eid'l Adha is the second of two Muslim holidays celebrated worldwide each year, and considered the holier of the two. It honors the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son Ismaeel, as an act of obedience to God's command. (with reports from Madelene Perez & Reynadel Costillas, OJTs/PNA)



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ORMOC CITY -- This city will soon have its own laboratory that will be used to test wastewater quality.

And once fully operational, the facility can become an income earner for the city, servicing private establishments in other areas in the region.

Fe Comorposa, head of the city's Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), said a laboratory will be set up at the second floor of the Ormoc City Hospital, situated in San Pablo village. The future laboratory will be an extension of the local environment office.

Comorposa, in an interview on Thursday, said the Energy Development Corporation (EDC) agreed to provide financial support for the project as part of the company's corporate social responsibility.

The official estimated a PHP2 million outlay for the acquisition of various equipment, but she said that EDC will source out funds through the Energy Regulations No. 1-94 for the final quotation from the supplier.

A room will be devoted for bacteriological testing, and the other one will be for physico-chemical analysis of waste water.

"The facility will conduct analysis of waste water initially, but in due time, potable water will be included," she emphasized.

There are 13 water sampling stations in Ormoc Bay, which expands up to its neighboring Albuera and Merida towns, 10 of which are in Ormoc City.

Currently, the city sends water samples to Cebu for some analysis not available in local sampling stations, spending some PHP10,500 every month.

Comorposa believes that putting up its own water quality laboratory will significantly reduce the city's expenditure for water quality testing.

Moreover, she said that the laboratory can become a source of revenue for the city, as it can cater testing services for private establishments in other areas in the region, once it is fully operational.

With this, she added that they will request technical assistance from DENR's Environmental Management Bureau to conduct further training to augment their capability of manning the facility.

No particular date has been set yet for the turnover of the building, but city planning coordinator Engr. Raoul Cam said that repair work for the city hospital is nearly completed by the contractors.

The Ormoc Bay and its associated watershed were officially designated as water quality management area through DENR Administrative Order No. 21, series of 2013 aimed at working and protecting the water quality of water bodies to sustain safe resources for the people. (PNA)



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MAPANDAN, Pangasinan -- This town has been the latest locality declared free of illegal drugs by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) .

The agency said the town of San Nicolas is expected to follow very soon.

PDEA has earlier declared as drug-free the towns of Dasol, Agno, Laoac, and the city of Alaminos -- the first city in the entire country cleared of illegal drugs.

The town of Sto. Tomas, meanwhile, was declared by the PDEA earlier as drug unaffected.

PDEA Assistant Regional Director, Lawyer Marvin Tavares, signed the declaration for Mapandan together with PDEA Assistant Regional Director Marvin Tavares, Department of Interior and Local Government Director James Fadrilan, Police Provincial Director Sr. Superintendent Ronald Lee, Mapandan Mayor Gerald Tambaoan and the town's chief of police.

Prior to the declaration, all the 15 barangays of Mapandan were cleared of illegal drugs.

At least 300 self-confessed drug personalities in Mapandan surrendered to the police, all of them completing rehabilitation interventions. They, too, passed drug tests administered by the Department of Health.

The Pangasinan police said it expects to clear the entire province of illegal drugs by December 31. (PNA)



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KALIBO, Aklan -- The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) will start collecting parking fees at the Kalibo International Airport (KIA) this September 20.

According to an advisory issued by Kalibo airport management, all vehicles parked at the airport premises will be charged PHP20 for the first two hours; and PHP10 for succeeding hours. The notice was first posted on August 24. 

Kalibo Airport Manager Efren Nagrama, in a press statement issued Friday, said the charging of parking fees is pursuant to CAAP Authority Order No. 140-14 dated June 10, 2014.
Government vehicles, airport employees, concessionaires, and transport service, meanwhile, can avail of a CAAP parking sticker which gives them parking privileges valid for a year.
The sticker can be availed for a fee prescribed by CAAP.

The Kalibo airport is one of the busiest airports in the country, catering to both domestic and international flights. It is a gateway to the world-famous island of Boracay. (PNA)



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PALAYAN CITY, Nueva Ecija -- This city, the capital of Nueva Ecija province, has a new measure to step-up the drive against illegal drugs.

Mayor Adrianne Mae Cuevas said the month of August of every year is now an "Anti-Illegal Drugs Month" after the Sangguniang Panlungsod unanimously approved Kapasyahan Blg. 56 Serye 2017 last August 14.

The measure was formally introduced to the public during the 5th Anti-Illegal Drugs Summit held at the Plaza Concepcion here Thursday.

"This is not only meant for those who are using illegal drugs but also to the youth who might get hooked to drugs too," Cuevas said, adding the measure may also lead to provision of funds and month-long packed programs in the future.

She said the measure is also in support of President Rodrigo Duterte's campaign against hard drugs.

Cuevas launched the summit, participated in by several agencies, particularly education and law enforcement bodies, in 2013.

The mayor said identified users in the city have mostly undergone drug test and rehabilitation.

The city government has been relentless in its drive against illegal drugs even if the problem is not that big here.

Police have arrested a relatively small number of 15 persons, five through arrest warrants, eight in buy-bust and two in checkpoints, in its relentless drive under Oplan Double Barrel here, city police chief, Chief Inspector Arnel Santiago, said.

On top of this, 546 people have surrendered and are undergoing local-level rehabilitation in the Bahay Pagbabago established, in coordination with the local government unit, under Oplan Tokhang, he said.

Some 50.53 grams of suspected "shabu" and 619.30 grams of dried marijuana leaves were recovered from the surrenderers.

All local government employees and police personnel have also undergone drugs test, police reported. (PNA)



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DUMAGUETE CITY – The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has scheduled a power service interruption on Saturday in some parts of Negros Oriental for maintenance and other operations.

The power service interruption will be from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. in areas serviced by the Negros Oriental Electric Cooperative I and II (NORECO I) and (NORECO II), confirmed Michelle Visera of NGCP-Visayas on Friday.

According to Visera, this is to make up for an earlier schedule that NGCP had postponed to a later date.

NORECO I areas to be affected are Bais, Bindoy and Guihulngan sub-stations, she said.

NORECO II areas to be affected are the towns of Pamplona, Tanjay City and Amlan. NORECO II said their Tanjay sub-station will be affected.

Visera explained the specific areas to be affected are determined by the distribution utilities, namely, NORECO I and NORECO II.

This is a rescheduling of the power service interruption which was cancelled last July 16, said NORECO II.

NGCP will de-energize its Amlan-Guihulngan 69kV transmission line, which conveys power to NORECO II's Tanjay sub-station to conduct the activities, such as the APMS of Amlan 50MVA TR-1 and correction of low vertical clearance along Bindoy-Guihulngan 69kV transmission line.

NGCP will also conduct replacement of rotten cross-arms along Amlan-Bindoy and along Bindoy-Guihulngan 69kV transmission lines and replacement of insulators along Amlan-Bindoy and Bindoy-Guihulngan 69kV transmission line. (PNA)



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CEBU CITY -- A Commission on Elections (Comelec) official here said the Senate will most likely pass a bill postponing the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections to October next year.

Cebu Provincial Election Supervisor Lawyer Lionel Castillano said Thursday afternoon that while the Lower House has proposed to postpone the local elections in May next year, he strongly believes the Senate will push for an October 2018 polls.

"If this happens, the House committee will probably decide which bill to pass to reconcile both bills before passing it into law," Castillano said in an interview.

Castillano said that if elections will happen in May next year, there will be no classes and will give SK candidates enough time to campaign. The teachers and classrooms will also be available in May.

Elections in October 2018, on the other hand, will give people two ample quarters, or six months to register.

"But for me, whether May or October, it will be both close to our preparations for the 2019 national and local elections. Remember by 2019, we will be accepting certificates of candidacy. It's both too close," Castillano said.

"Personally, I would like to have it in May. Anyway, three months, or one quarter, would be enough time for those who want to register," Castillano added.

Meanwhile, Provincial Board Member Celestino Martinez III said it's practically the same whether the barangay and SK elections will be held in May or October next year, as this doesn't change the fact that there will be scheduled elections.

"The Senate and the House should decide on this soonest because it's time to close this issue of postponements," Martinez said. (USJR intern Levirose Caballero/PNA)



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DAVAO CITY -- The Davao City government has urged investors to put up parking facility to address lack of parking spaces in downtown area, especially when the city starts to implement the "No Street Parking" regulation.

The parking facility will be the new area for preferred investments which can be covered by tax incentive packages, according to Davao City Investment and Promotion Center (DCIPC) head Lemuel Ortonio.

The proposed incentive for this investment will have longer terms where both the fiscal and real property tax will be covered for six years.

This is also a type of investment which has longer return of investment. The parking facility, he said, can either be vertical or horizontal and even underground provided it will be exclusively use as a parking facility.

Ortonio said there is already a proposed ordinance prohibiting parking on city streets that was already approved by the city council on first reading and for public consultation. The side streets are being used for parking.

According to Ortonio, a Japanese company has submitted a proposal through a public private partnership (PPP) arrangement.

He said the PPP secretariat already sent the necessary requirements and also a follow up letter regarding such investment.

Given this, Ortonio said the city will be enticing investors in this area of investment with an assurance that areas for such projects are pre-identified in the first district.

This type of investment is also open to investors who have idle lands that can be used as parking facility, he said.

DCIPC is also considering other areas of investments on learning or education institutions. Among the new schools which will soon operate here is the Malayan Colleges of Mapua University while Letran University and the Lyceum University of the Philippines are reportedly planning to establish its own branch in Davao City. (Digna D. Banzon/PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- Eight fighters, including five Maute group members and three soldiers, were killed while 52 others were wounded as fighting continues in Marawi City, a military official said Friday.

Capt. Jo-ann Petinglay, Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) information officer, did not disclose the specific location of the latest firefight except to say it happened on Thursday afternoon in the "main battle area" of Marawi City.

Petinglay said the troops were advancing when the firefight broke out against the Islamic State for Iraq and Syria (ISIS)-inspired Maute group members.

Petinglay said the firefight resulted to the death of five Maute group members.

She said the troops accidentally tripped on improvised explosive device (IED) killing three soldiers at the height of the firefight.
She revealed that 52 others were injured as they too accidentally tripped on IEDs while coming to the aid of their wounded companions.

"It is a natural reaction for soldiers to come to the rescue of their wounded companions but they also ended up injured as they tripped on IEDs," she said.

"There were several IEDs placed by the enemy forces (in the main battle area)," she added.

She said the number of slain government troops have increased to 136 with the death of the three soldiers on Thursday afternoon.
The fatalities on the Maute group have increased to 608 with the death of the five of their followers.

Thursday's firefight came three days after a marine soldier was killed in an IED explosion in Marawi City.

Rear Adm. Rene Medina, Naval Forces Western Mindanao (NFWM) command chief, disclosed that PFC Robert Bismar tripped on an IED while his squad maneuvered from one building to another to establish a defensive position.

Medina said Bismar was rushed but failed to reach alive at the medical station in Barangay Lilod Madaya, Marawi City.

The NFWM rendered full military honors to the late Bismar, whose remains were brought to his family's residence on Thursday in Barangay Upper Calarian, this city. (TPGJR/PNA)



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BACOLOD CITY -- The provincial government of Negros Occidental has set aside PHP28 million this year for the post-graduate scholarships of 1,000 public school teachers in the province.

This was announced by Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr. after the recent graduation of 186 elementary and high school teachers with doctoral and masteral degrees at the University of St. La Salle (USLS) here.

The scholarship program is being implemented through the Project Flagships to Reach Educational Excellence (FREE).


The province's partnership with USLS started in 2014 when it signed a memorandum of agreement with the university and the Department of Education (DepEd) to upgrade the teaching skills and knowledge of public school teachers. The end-goal is to improve the scholastic performance of the Negrense schoolchildren.


That year, the provincial government allocated PHP36 million for the masteral and doctoral studies of 1,560 teachers.


Marañon, in a press statement on Thursday, expressed his admiration for the teachers determined to complete their post-graduate studies despite working full-time in school.

He is optimistic the teacher-scholars will apply their learning to improve the scholastic performance of the schoolchildren in Negros Occidental.

In December last year, 1,473 elementary and secondary teachers, who were scholars of Project FREE, graduated with degrees in Masters in Education and Master of Arts in Education at USLS. (PNA)



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DAVAO CITY -- Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio is wishing that religion, color, and race should not break unity as she joins Muslims in celebrating Eid'l Adha Friday.

"Let us also not allow hate, discrimination, or conflict to come between us and break our unity, " the city mayor said in a statement released to the media.

Duterte-Carpio has expressed her warm wishes and sincere hope that the feast of sacrifice becomes an opportunity for the people to show love, compassion, kindness to everyone, especially the needy, the sick and the children.

She also wished that everyone will work for lasting peace.

"Let us be reminded that no religion, color, or race should shatter our community and our shared values and aspirations to live peacefully," she said.

On Friday morning, hundreds of Davao Muslims went to their Mosques for the Eid prayer. Eid'l Adha is one of Islam's two major feasts that is celebrated worldwide to commemorate the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his son, as an act of obedience to God's command.

Davao City is home to different Muslim tribes - the Maguindanaons, Maranaos, Iranuns. Each is represented by a deputy mayor designated by the mayor to serve as link to the community. (Lilian C. Mellejor/PNA)



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BACOLOD CITY -- From its current PHP10-billion credit assistance for Negros and Panay, the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) is planning to triple the amount to fund additional projects, particularly in infrastructure, by 2018.

Cecilia Borromeo, president and chief executive officer of DBP, said deposits in both areas have reached almost PHP30 billion, giving the bank lots of room to increase credit assistance to more players.

"This is the portfolio of DBP as of June this year and we hope to triple the PHP10-billion credit assistance by 2018," said Borromeo during the DBP Business Roadshow at L'Fisher Hotel here on Thursday.

She said the thrust of DBP is to support the "Build, Build, Build" program of the Duterte administration.

At present, the PHP10-billion loan exposure for Negros and Panay is funding programs in healthcare, education, water sector, renewable energy, and infrastructure developments of local government units (LGUs).

"We are encouraging various leaders in the industry and public sector to consider DBP as their partner in expanding their facilities and in embarking on new projects," Borromeo said.

 For his part, DBP chairman Alberto Romulo said that as the bank reaches its 70th year, it also considers as milestone the move of President Rodrigo Duterte designating DBP as the "infrastructure bank" of the Philippines.

"In this golden age of infrastructure, the DBP is at the front line," he said.

Data presented by Borromeo showed the DBP posted an impressive net income of PHP2.65 billion in the second quarter of the year, with an increase of 34 percent from the PHP1.98 billion net income in the same period in 2016.

The DBP's gross loan portfolio also grew by 26 percent, to PHP289.8 billion in the second quarter of 2017 from only PHP229.5 billion last year.

The bank's assets amount to PHP526.5 billion as of the second quarter, posting a nine percent increase from the previous year's PHP481.2 billion.

Deposit level reached PHP344.4 billion, Borromeo added. (PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- The Fleet-Marine Team of the Naval Forces Western Mindanao (NFWM) has accorded full military honors to a fallen soldier in the ongoing fighting in Marawi City, a top military official said Friday.

Rear Adm. Rene Medina, NFWM commander named the fallen soldier as PFC Robert Bismar of the 7th Marine Company.

Medina said Bismar died on Monday after he tripped on an improvised bomb fashioned as a landmine while his squad was on tactical maneuver from one building to the other to establish a defensive position.

Medina said Bismar was brought to a medical station in Barangay Liloh Madaya, but was declared dead on arrival by the attending physician.

He said Thursday they accorded full military honors to the late Bismar, whose remains were brought to the family residence in Barangay Upper Calarian, this city.

He said the NFWM and the Armed forces of the Philippines (AFP) as a whole condoled with the family of the fallen soldier who took up the challenge to serve and bring peace to the city of Marawi.

"Their dedication in serving the country will always be honored and remembered by the nation and the Filipino people," he added.

The Maute group has planted several improvised bombs to delay the movement of advancing military troops. (TPGJR/PNA)



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BACOLOD CITY-- A total of 34 smoking ban violators on board public utility jeepneys (PUJs) have been apprehended more than a month after the strict enforcement of the law in this city, based on the records of the Bacolod Traffic Authority Office (BTAO).

BTAO, which recorded the apprehensions from July 25 to August 31, reported on Friday that the violators included 23 passengers and 11 public utility jeepney drivers.

Superintendent LuisitoAcebuche, chief of BTAO, said traffic enforcers are assigned to monitor and arrest violators in public utility vehicles only.

"They should pay the fines, and if they fail to do so within 72 hours, they will be charged for violation of City Ordinance 641," the BTAO chief said.

City Ordinance 614, which was passed in 2013, regulates smoking in public places, including public conveyances, and advertisements, promotions, and sponsorships of tobacco products.

Violators will pay a fine of PHP500 for first offense, PHP1,000 for second offense, and PHP2,500 or imprisonment for third offense.

Bacolod's anti-smoking task force, formed to enforce City Ordinance 641, was reactivated in support of President Rodrigo Duterte's Executive Order No. 26 which bans smoking in public and enclosed places nationwide starting July 22 this year.

Other prohibited acts are smoking within enclosed public places and public conveyances, except in designated smoking areas (DSA); selling of tobacco products to minors; ordering a minor to use, buy, or distribute tobacco products; and placing tobacco advertisements outside the premises of point-of-sale establishments.

Councilor Caesar Distrito, co-chairman of the Anti-Smoking Task Force, said they are following a two-way approach in addressing the smoking issue.

These include education and information, and strict implementation, which should be done simultaneously, he added.

Distrito said members of the action team will be trained on the proper apprehension of violators.


The police will assist in the enforcement and those in the barangays will also be trained to help, he added. (PNA)



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LAOAG CITY — At least 52 athletic scholars in Batac and Laoag cities of Ilocos Norte are set to receive their stipend on September 4.

Matilde Neri of the Provincial Education Office, confirmed this on Friday as they are now preparing for the distribution to be led by Senior Provincial Board Member Matthew Joseph Manatoc, who initiated this special scholarship program of the Ilocos Norte government.

Each scholar is entitled to Php 1,000 as uniform allowance and Php 500 per month throughout the first semester.

Manotoc hopes that by supporting these scholars, Ilocos Norte could produce more athletes "to compete and excel in the different sports events like the Region One Athletic Association meet, and even Palarong Pambansa."

Manotoc is the main author of an ordinance creating the Summer Youth Sports Program in the province that aims to instill discipline, proper hygiene, as well as talent development among Ilocano youths. (PNA)



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LAOAG CITY — Twenty-seven year-old John Lei Ganiron is a rising star in organic farming. He is an "Outstanding Young Farmer" awardee in Batac City who pioneered in automated hydroponics technology last year, growing lettuce and other high-value vegetables.

A graduate of Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Communications Engineering, he opted to follow in his dad's footsteps as an outstanding organic farmer.

Sharing his bright prospects in agriculture, Ganiron is now a certified organic farming trainer by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and a staunch advocate of green revolution.

He is engaged in the propagation of floating-leaf plants considered as power foods for animals, fish, ducks and chickens, among others.

Over the years, these protein-rich aquatic plants such as Azolla caroliniana (mosquito fern), duckweed and giant salvinia imported from the United States have been utilized by some farmers here and abroad but it is only now that local farmers like the Ganiron family are trying to revive their propagation.

"It took me a hard time to figure how to grow it because of erratic weather and warm temperature. I made a series of tests at home and at the farm. When I was about to give up, my father called on me saying our plant experiment at farm is showing sign of progress," Ganiron said.

From a simple makeshift of rectangular containers filled with water and some other recycled plastic materials and styrofor, these floating leaf-plants grow in abundance at the Ganiron residence in Ben-agan. Some are also grown at their approximately three-hectare farm in San Mateo village, about a 10-minute drive from the city proper.

To date, John Lei and his dad Romeo, who is also a multi-awarded farmer, are now selling these aquatic plants at a fairly good price ranging from Php 800 to Php 1,000 per kilo.

According to the younger Ganiron, growing these protein-rich plants greatly reduced their farm inputs as they are also engaged in growing tilapia and catfish, free-range chickens and wild pigs, among others.

For interested farmers or agriculture students, the Romaine Organics school for practical agriculture, being managed by the father and son, is now accepting applicants on organic farming technology course, free of charge.

Starting this September, they can accommodate up to 30 individuals to compose the first batch of trainees. As the first TESDA-accredited farm business school in Ilocos Norte, the Romaine Organics Open University provides a 29-day training course to all interested applicants aged 18 years old and above.

Upon completion and assessment, successful graduates can avail of their national certificate from TESDA. (PNA)



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DAGUPAN CITY – A task force was formed by the Public Service Employment Office (PESO) here to help tricycle drivers displaced by the city government's "Oplan Zero Colorum" that has already impounded some 70 tricycles sans issued franchises.

PESO Manager Joy Siapno said the task force will assist drivers of colorum units in seeking better options instead of plying the streets and putting themselves at risk of paying fines and impoundment of their units.

Siapno said at least eight tricycle drivers have already been properly informed by the PESO on job vacancies available locally and abroad and advised to submit their respective filled out bio-data forms.

"Once they do this, we will refer them to the companies that will need their skills, said Siapno.

The Public Order and Safety Office (POSO) launched the "Oplan Zero Colorum" in a bid to clear the streets of Dagupan as studies showed these colorum units are contributing to the congestion of many city thoroughfares. (PNA)

 



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ILOILO CITY -- A composite team of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Western Visayas cornered and shot dead suspected drug lord Richard Prevendido in a police operation conducted here at about 8 p.m. Friday.

Prevendido, leader of the Prevendido Drug Group, had a PHP1.1 million bounty on his head.

The team, consisting of personnel from the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO), Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO) and the Police Regional Office 6 Intelligence Division, was supposed to serve Prevendido a warrant of arrest in his house at Landheights Subdivision, Barangay Balabago in Jaro district in this city when the incident happened.

"It looks like he has been staying here for a long time," said Senior Superintendent Marlon Tayaba, IPPO director.

The warrant of arrest for violation of Section 11, Paragraph 1 of Republic Act 9165 otherwise known as the Comprehensive Drugs Act was signed by Judge Daniel Amolar on January 6, 2017.

Tayaba, who was one of the policemen who served the arrest warrant, said Prevendido was ready to engage the troops.

"Naka-ready na sila pagpasok pa lang ng tropa (They were ready as the team was entering)," he said.

Prevendido, who was with an armed unidentified male companion, allegedly fired at the police operatives, prompting the latter to retaliate.

Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) were still at the crime scene as of this writing.

Police operatives were able to recover from Prevendido and his companion one AK-47 and two .45-caliber pistols.

Before the incident, police operatives scoured the mountainous areas of Janiuay, Lambuno, Anilao, Dingle, Barotac Viejo and Cabatuan towns in Iloilo in search of the drug lord, according to Tayaba.

His death came one year after suspected drug lord Melvin Odicta and his wife Meriam were killed at Caticlan Port in Malay, Aklan while on their way home to Iloilo from Manila.

The Odicta and Prevendido drug groups are said to be operating in Western Visayas. With the death of Odicta, Prevendido reportedly succeeded as the region's top drug lord.

Prevendido's death came days after the assignment of Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido as officer-in-charge of the ICPO. (Cindy Ferrer/PNA)



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DUMAGUETE CITY -- A strike looms at the Negros Oriental Electric Cooperative 1 (NORECO 1) based in Bindoy, Negros Oriental following a strike vote among members of the employees' union who are also members of the Philippine Agriculture Commercial Industrial Workers Union-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (PACIWU-TUCP).

Union president Marlito Amante disclosed that 15 out of 18 holding supervisory positions in the electric cooperative voted in favor of the strike.
Also, 87 of 97 employees who sent a letter-complaint before the National Electrification Administration (NEA) also cast their ballots with 82 in favor, four with spoiled ballots and only one voting against it.

The tentative schedule for the strike is on September 5, 2017.

Amante wanted to reach out to the member-consumers in the NORECO I coverage area that they are doing this in order to protect the interest of the cooperative members, in seeking the ouster of the general manager Juvileo D. Acabal.

Lack of satisfactory management decision making and aptitude skills, excessive usage of cooperative vehicle for personal purposes, unwarranted liquidation of expenses for non-coop related dealings, unauthorized claims of information dissemination allowance based on NEA audit findings and abuse of management prerogative through repetition of similar lapses on the hiring, promotion of unqualified applicants to fill-up plantilla positions are among the complaints raised by the employees' union before the National Electrification Administration.

In response to the letter complaint, NORECO I general manager Acabal accused 97 of the total 121 regular employees of the cooperative for libel. A preliminary investigation was conducted Thursday at the Provincial Prosecutor's Office.

Acabal, together with the cooperative's lawyer, Whelma Yap, were present along with the 97 employees who were represented by their legal counsel, Atty. Dante Zamora.

In an interview Thursday afternoon, Garnet Yso, chapter president of PACIWU NORECO and Amante, said they would have wanted the issue to be resolved internally that is why they directed their letter-complaint to the proper authorities, only to be accused of libel.
The NEA deputy administrator for electric cooperative management services had furnished a copy of the leadership performance evaluation and assessment of working relationship among employees and other stakeholders of the cooperative.

On the aspect of environmental scanning, participated in by 116 regular employees, regarding GM Acabal's leadership, management, performance and his relationship towards the employees, the results showed that 84 employees graded him poorly, 15 rated him satisfactorily, nine, very satisfactory and eight, outstanding.

As to questions of his leadership and management style, GM Acabal had 21 employees for him, 11 have abstained while 84 or 72.41 percent of the employees are not amenable to the way he runs the cooperative.

In view of the foregoing premises, NEA has recommended to Acabal the conduct of constant communication and consultation with the employees, and that policies regarding the concerns raised by the employees must be formulated or revisited through a board resolution.

Also, the GM department, area and division managers including management and staff must undergo a supervisors' training course and for the board of directors, the GM, management and staff to exercise cooperativism, team work, dialogue and dedication to work for the capability of the employees, financial viability and power service reliability, and for the BOD to convene a dialogue between NORECO I concerned employees and the GM to talk, discuss and patch up differences for the sake of the consumers.

Despite these findings and recommendations, union members were charged with libel before the provincial prosecutor's office.

In an interview, both Amante and Yso claimed they have on their side the board of directors who approved a resolution terminating the general manager, but NEA has still to act on it. (PNA)



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DAVAO CITY – President Rodrigo Duterte has reiterated he will step down as president if the people will no longer trust and find him fit to lead the country.

He said this following accusations of corruption at the Bureau of Customs (BoC) linking his son Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte and his son-in-law Manases "Mans" Carpio – the husband of Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

Duterte, however, dared accusers to show proof - a CCTV footage with voice recording wherein a person gave money for a transaction and accepted by the vice mayor and Carpio.

Speaking before men and women of the Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom) during its 11th founding anniversary at the Naval Station Felix Apolinario (NSFA) in Panacan, Davao City late Friday afternoon, the President admitted that Carpio told him about the offer of Mighty Corporation to be its legal counsel on the tax case filed against the cigarette firm.

"Basta wala ka lang hingin sa akin (As long as you will not ask favor from me)," Duterte recalled telling Carpio. The time came when there was an offer of P3 billion that Duterte said he did not accept until the offer was raised to P45 billion.

Duterte said Carpio is a practicing lawyer, emphasizing that just like doctors, lawyers have their oath of office to defend without fear or favor. It's part of the job, he said.

As for son Paolo, Duterte said, "Sinabi ko bigyan ninyo ako ng affidavit na may taong nagbigay siya mismo, kung may camera, may audio, mas maganda at tinanggap niya at narinig ko - ito bayad sa ano (I said provide me an affidavit, if there is a camera, an audio, it's better and he accepted and I heard – this is a payment for)."

"I will step down. Pag na-involve ako sa corruption o 'yung mga anak ko. Huwag naman 'yung basura na ituro lang na ganun, na ganun (If I am involved in corruption or my children, but not that trash of just pointing a finger at you)," he stressed.

The President expressed disgust over recent accusations involving his family in the BoC issue. He said Senator Antonio Trillanes has been throwing all trash at him and Paolo since the election period.

When Trillanes accused him of amassing P211 million in total bank accounts, Duterte said he even gave a permission to dig into it until the last rural bank of the Philippines. But Duterte said all the accusations of Trillanes are all trash.

"Pagdating ng panahon na nakita ninyo ako binobola ko kayo (When the time comes you see me that I was just flattering all of you) , you are free to advise me to step down or I myself would step down," he said.

"Prangka-prangka lang ako sa inyo kasi Presidente ninyo ako at dapat ang tingin ninyo 'yung tao na ako makapadala. I'm able to run an organization such as the military and the Armed Forces and the Police (Let's be frank...I will be frank because I am your President and the way you see is I am capable to run...I am able to run an organization such as the military and the police)," the President said.

He added that he has no illusion to cling to the presidency. "I'm ready to step down, especially on the issue of corruption," Duterte said. (Lilian C. Mellejor/PNA)



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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – As the House of Representatives is in the thick of deliberating the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), a Lanao del Norte lawmaker asked Congress to step up security in his home province.

Lanao del Norte 1st District Rep. Mohamad Khalid Dimaporo urged the Lower House to request the armed forces to send additional troops and equipment to prevent any violence that could erupt should an armed group decide to attack the province.

Dimaporo first issued this call in his privilege speech in Congress on August 29, where he underscored the importance of preventing possible attacks similar to what happened in 2008 in the province when the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) laid siege on its towns.

BBL was drafted to establish the new Bangsamoro political entity and provide for its basic structure of government, in recognition of the aspirations of the Bangsamoro people.

MILF forces attacked Lanao del Norte following the failure of the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD), which the Moro separatist rebels and the government of then president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed, but was met with massive opposition from other sectors in Mindanao, in 2008.

Despite assurance from Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) ground commander, MILF fighters attacked the towns of Kauswagan and Kolambugan. MILF leader Abdullah Makapaar, alias "Commander Bravo," used civilians as human shield, in their retreat.

"What we've learned from the MOA-AD attacks," Dimaporo said, "is that two battalions are not enough. The MILF were able to succeed because when one battalion was assigned to protect Lanao del Norte, the area of the province was too wide, making the battalion spread too thin."

Aside from his proposal to increase the military presence in his province, Dimaporo also filed resolutions in Congress directing the Department of Transportation, in coordination with the Philippine Air Force, to convert the Balo-i airport to an Air Force base to augment the security forces in the area.

Another resolution was filed to direct the Department of Justice to submit to the appropriate committee a copy of the case filed against Commander Bravo and his warrant of arrest in relation to the 2008 MILF attack in Lanao del Norte.

"The attack should never be forgotten, it should be taken into account especially during the deliberation of the Bangsamoro Basic Law," he said.

President Rodrigo Duterte has promised to push for the approval of the BBL when he received the new draft last July. (PNA/Jigger J. Jerusalem)



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ILOILO CITY –- Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Sr. on Thursday welcomed the assignment of Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido to Iloilo City. 

Espenido, known to be an effective and brave implementer of the campaign against hard drugs, will help determine the true situation in Iloilo City, especially about the allegations against Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog being a drug protector, said Gov. Defensor in a press conference.

"And he can relay to the President the real situation on the ground," he said.

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief, Director General Ronald dela Rosa, on Wednesday issued the order assigning Espenido as officer-in-charge of Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO).

Defensor, in his own assessment, said the situation in Iloilo City is different from Ozamiz City.

Under Espenido's watch as police chief Ozamiz City, Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog and six others were killed in a series of police raids conducted by police authorities in July.

"But Mabilog is not a drug lord and the President even used the word 'protector'. The question is how true it is that Mabilog is a drug protector? It is good that Espenido would know and report it to the President," he stressed.

"If he (Mabilog) is a drug protector or not, that I do not know. But Espenido would know if that is true or not," the governor added. 

When asked if he will request Espenido to be assigned to the Iloilo province to help eliminate problems on hard drugs, the governor stressed that the province does not need him.

He said that he was not even sure if the President's allegations against the three mayors of the province as narco-politicians are true or not as no case has been filed against any of them. (PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- The Filipino-Turkish Tolerance School (FTTS) will once again commemorate the feast of Eid'l Adha on Friday, September 1.

Eid'l Adha or the Feast of Sacrifice is Kurban in Turkish.
FTTS director Maruf Celebi on Thursday said that as an annual tradition, they will slaughter several heads of cattle "as a form of sacrifice, and will distribute its beef to indigent families or recipients in the different communities."

"We also share these beef with the different government and non-government institutions in the city, thus, signifying the real essence of this great observance," Celebi said.

He said the religious act of slaughtering the cattle will be held starting at 8 a.m. in the school grounds of FTTS.

President Rodrigo Duterte has declared September 1 a regular holiday in observance of the Muslim festival Eid'l Adha.

The declaration was issued through Proclamation No. 297 which the President signed August 29, 2017.

Eid'l Adha is one of Islam's two major feasts that is celebrated worldwide each year.

The festival commemorates the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son, as an act of obedience to God's command. (PNA)



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BACOLOD CITY -- The city will implement waste segregation starting September 1 with barangay officials expressing support to the solid waste management program.

The Solid Waste Action Team, chaired by Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran, emphasized the vital role of the barangays in the implementation of the "no segregation, no collection" policy.

"We hope to educate our residents on how to segregate waste at source," the vice mayor said.

Familiaran said once the policy is enforced, garbage collectors will not pick up the unsegregated wastes of households or business establishments.

Barangay 13 village chief Tanya Familiaran, vice president of the Liga ng mga Barangay, said an information campaign among their residents was conducted in preparation for the implementation.

The vice mayor said proposals are being solicited from the 61 barangays for the hosting of shredding machines as part of the waste segregation policy.

Three barangays already submitted proposals namely, Alangilan, Cabug and Pahanocoy.
Smaller barangays can submit a proposal to jointly host a shredding machine, said Familiaran, who met with the village chiefs at the Bacolod Government Center on Wednesday.

Also present were representatives of supplier RU Foundry and Machine Shop Corp., which delivered 14 units of shredding machines with a total cost of PHP5 million.

The supplier discussed how to operate the machine and the economic benefits it will bring to the residents.

Shredded biodegradable waste will be collected by trash hauler IPM-Construction and Development Corp. and will be brought to the City Agriculture Office for use in organic farming.

"We need the cooperation of everybody for the implementation of Republic Act 9003 (Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000)," Familiaran added.

The "Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000," provides that local government units shall be primarily responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the provisions of this law within their respective jurisdictions.

The law also seeks to ensure the proper segregation, collection, transport, storage, treatment and disposal of solid waste through the formulation and adoption of the best environmental practice in ecological waste management excluding incineration.(PNA)



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LEGAZPI CITY --- The Department of Education (DepEd) regional office in Bicol assured the public that the random drug testing (RDT) for junior and senior high school students, both in private and public schools, will be purely confidential, a DepEd official said.

DepEd-Bicol Assistant Regional Director Tolentino Aquino, in a press conference Thursday, said they need to protect the welfare, safety and security of the learners, so the results of the random drug testing will be 100 percent confidential to the public.

The main purpose of the conduct of drug testing in public and private schools is to determine the prevalence of drug use among the students and extent of the hard drugs problem in schools, Aquino explained.

DepEd recently released the guidelines for the conduct of drug testing for school year 2017-2018 with a 95-percent confidence level on the results.

"We have to emphasize, if a student who tested positive, the drug testing coordinator will inform the parents and students of the results, and the information is regarded with utmost secrecy and confidentiality," Aquino said.

Students found to be drug dependent will undergo the prescribed intervention program under the supervision of a Department of Health- accredited facility or physician or private practitioners in consultation with the parent. The process of observation and counselling shall be done in coordination with the drug counselor of the school, Aquino said.

He added that a positive confirmatory drug test result shall not be a ground for expulsion nor any disciplinary action against the student and shall not be reflected in any and all academic records.

The results shall not be used to incriminate any student for further legal action and shall not be used as evidence in any court or tribunal where the subject student stands to be accused.

Aquino said while the students undergo interventions, they will be subject to a modular type of teaching, adding that materials are available for that kind of scheme, and it will be a home-based type of learning.

He said students would not be exposed to humiliation if they test positive for drug use.

"The DepEd created a Data Confidentiality Committee. The parent and the student only will have the result of the test. The name of the students will not be released as well as the names of the schools," Aquino said.

At present, DepEd-Bicol is undertaking measures to inform all public and private secondary schools of the said testing. (PNA)

 



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DUMAGUETE CITY – The earnings of the sub-port of Dumaguete of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) reached the one-billion-peso mark this August, giving high confidence of exceeding its target collection by the end of the year.

Dumaguete Customs Collector Fe Lluelyn Ganir Toring said Thursday that from January 1 to August 31 this year, her office already has a total collection of PHP1.14 billion.

With only four more months to go until the end of the year, Toring expressed confidence her office will be able to meet or even exceed their target collection of PHP1.303 billion.

She said her office only needs to obtain at least PHP40 million a month in the next four months for them to surpass their target.

In previous years, she added, they would usually average more than that per month.

She said two shipments of oil are up for inspection in September, with an estimated PHP100 million in revenues.

The positive collection performance of the BOC's Sub-port of Dumaguete is largely attributed to Fil Oil for petroleum products, DUCOMI for palm oil importation and Pryce Gas for LPGs or liquefied petroleum gas, the Customs collector here said.

A comparative collection report also showed that the Sub-port's collection up to August 31, this year, is much bigger than that of the same period in 2016.

The total collection of the Dumaguete Customs office from January 1 to August 31, 2016 was pegged at PHP711,891,783 million compared to the PHP1.14 billion for the same period this year.

The Customs Sub-port of Dumaguete has been consistently cited for many years now for its performance collection that has always exceeded its target each year. (PNA)



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ILOILO CITY -- Members of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in Western Visayas made an initial inspection on the residence of Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog Thursday afternoon.

Ariel Castañeda, head of the Local Economic Enterprise Office (LEEO) of the city government, who was present when the NBI team arrived, said that verbally they sought permission prior to making some documentation within the house premises.

It was supposed to be a discreet ocular inspection for documentation, according to an NBI personnel, who refused to grant an interview for lack of authority to speak.

Jay Victor E. Mabilog, executive assistant at the Office of the City Mayor and sibling of Mayor Mabilog, said he was informed that the NBI "initially wanted to inspect the premise, especially the inside."

"I met one of their agents and I was told they were here just to check the premises. After that, they went back to their car and advised us that they are leaving," he said. The executive assistant arrived when the agents are already inside the compound of the Mabilogs.

Before they left, the NBI agents took pictures of what's inside the compound such as vehicles and outside view of the house, among others.

"Like what the President said there has to be due process and the rule of law will be observed. Based on that we expect courtesy from them. Our house is open as long as they ask permission and there are documents," the younger Mabilog said.

After the NBI's inspection, Mabilog said they are expecting other government agencies to also visit the house of the mayor. While expecting the worst scenario, Mayor Mabilog continuously ask for prayers, he added.

He also toured members of the local media inside the house to see for themselves the mayor's residence.

Atty. Mark Piad, spokesperson of the city mayor, said that there is nothing wrong with the conduct of the inspection "if it's part of their fact-finding investigation."

"Mayor Mabilog has committed to cooperate with whatever investigation that they are going to do," he explained.

He added that Mayor Mabilog has nothing to hide after President Rodrigo Duterte has declared that the NBI will conduct a lifestyle check on him.

Piad said they will cooperate with the investigation "within the bounds of the law."

President Duterte on Wednesday said that the house of Mabilog is like "a palace." He also ordered a lifestyle check on the mayor.

The three-storey house, with an area of around 200 square meters in Barangay Tap-oc, Molo, was built in 2013. A view from its terrace at the second floor is the Iloilo River.

Mayor Mabilog on Wednesday said that his house "while often described as a palace, is not quite a palace."

"Everybody dreams of building a beautiful home. Marivic and I built one not only for ourselves but for our children. And I had hoped to plant seeds of inspiration among Ilonggos that through hard work, they too like Jed Mabilog, can achieve their dreams," the mayor said.

His wife Marivic worked as vice president for finance and comptroller of Terracom, Geotechnique, a geodetic engineering firm in Canada, before retiring for good in Iloilo in 2014. (PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- The Zamboanga City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (ZCDRRMC) has been selected as one of the finalists in the Gawad Kalasag National Awards for Highly-Urbanized City Category.

Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Regional Director Manuel Luis Ochotorena on Thursday said the ZCDRRMC has passed the evaluation in accordance with the guidelines of Gawad Kalasag Search for Excellence in Disaster Risk Reduction and Management and Humanitarian Assistance.

Ochotorena said that the National Selection Committee (NSC) concluded the Desk Validation of entries submitted by the Regional Selection Committee (RSC).

He said a two-day field validation in this city was conducted on August 30-31 by the NSC.

The NSC is headed by Charmaine Villamil of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) central office with National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council Spokesperson Romina Marasigan and Hailey Meriel of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) central office, as members.

The Gawad Kalasag is the country's premier annual awards for outstanding contribution in the fields of disaster risk reduction and management and humanitarian action.

Kalasag is a Filipino term for "shield" used by early Filipinos as a means of protection from attacks of enemies or harmful animals.

The annual Gawad Kalasag Search aims to recognize outstanding performances of Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils, Barangay Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Committees, Civil Society Organizations, educational institutions including Early Learning Centers and Higher Education Institutions, Government Emergency Management (Basic and Advance), Hospitals, Volunteer Organizations, Private Organizations, and individuals who have shown acts of heroism during disasters and emergencies, and other major stakeholders who continue to render exemplary contribution in promoting and implementing significant and gender sensitive DRRM-Climate Change Adaptation programs and innovations that build community resiliency in the long term. (TPGJR/PNA)



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ILOILO CITY-- A total of 125 cleft lip and cleft palate patients in Western Visayas availed of the free surgery by the Medical Mission Matters Philippines in partnership with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Region 6.

Medical Mission Matters Philippines, a non-profit organization founded to help indigenous children, especially from the poorest of the poor families in the country, conduct free cleft lip and palate surgeries.

It aims to provide opportunity in the region especially Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program beneficiaries to be treated.

DSWD-6 regional program coordinator of 4Ps, Jonathan Anteza, said the patients availed of the free surgeries during two medical missions.

The first batch of 50 patients underwent cleft palate and lip repairs in March at Jesus M. Colmenares District Hospital in Balasan, Iloilo.

The second batch consisted of 75 patients at Ibajay District Hospital in Aklan province in August.

Anteza said these patients are a combination of Pantawid and non-Pantawid beneficiaries.

The free surgery is a big help to the indigent patients as they will have to spend PHP100,000 to PHP180,000 for the medical procedure in any hospital. (PNA)



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ARAYAT, Pampanga — Some 5,000 residents and farmers in this agricultural municipality will benefit from the newly-completed Small Water Impounding Project (SWIP) in Barangay Baliti here.

The SWIP is one of the projects of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) under its 2017 Assistance Disadvantaged Municipalities (ADM) program.

The project, which has an allotted PHP22.32-million budget, is seen to boost the agricultural production in this farming community.

DILG Provincial Director Myrvi Fabia said the municipality of Arayat is one of the 11 local government units in Pampanga that received funds from DILG for various development projects.

Aside from Arayat, Fabia said other recipients of the development funds ranging from PHP15 million to PHP24 million were the municipalities of Apalit,  Bacolor, Floridablanca, Guagua, Lubao, Macabebe, Minalin, San Luis, San Simon and Sto. Tomas.

"It is a funding-support program of the DILG in line with the advocacy of the national government to empower LGUs and boost citizen's access to basic facilities," she said.

Among the ADM projects are the rehabilitation and reconstruction of roads, and building of small water impounding facilities and evacuation facilities.

She added that the funds are downloaded to LGUs following their compliance with the requirements of the DILG Seal of Good Financial Housekeeping (GFH) and Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Public Financial Management System. (PNA)



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PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan – Brontispa longissima, the two-colored leaf beetle that feeds on young leaves of seedlings and mature coconut palms, has been fully-controlled in Palawan.

Raul Aguilar of the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) here said once a serious problem of coconuts in the province, the leaf beetle, has already been subdued through biological pest control (BPC) using black earwig.

Black earwig, according to Aguilar, now acts like the soldier of the coconut farmers as it eliminates the leaf beetle.

"We have long resolved the problem of brontispa in the province, and although they remain to be present in coconut trees, it is no longer a threat as we have determined how to manage it," Aguilar said Thursday in a Kapihan hosted by the Philippine Information Agency (PIA).

He said they were able to manage the problem on brontispa after the PCA set up bio-labs in Aborlan and Brooke's Point that now produce the black earwig.

"We don't use chemical control anymore because they kill other friendly insects. We are using bio-control with the use of black earwig," he said, explaining that their bio-labs are raising them to be released in brontispa longissima-infested coco palms.

The black earwig has a pair of forceps-like pincers on its abdomen. It feeds on the larva of the brontispa, which Aguilar said, is the most destructive stage of the leaf beetle.

The PCA bio-labs also supply black earwigs to the provinces of Zambales and Laguna, which had coconut leaf beetle infestation problem in the past.

Palawan has over 103,000 hectares of land plante



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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — The sprawling compound owned by controversial lawyer Elias Pamatong here was raided Thursday dawn (August 31) by the Martial Law Special Action Group (MLSAG), resulting to the confiscation of a firearm and explosives.

Pamatong has been a known eccentric figure in the country, and has faced criminal cases and even arrested several times but eluded conviction.

It took 42 search warrants to cover all of the houses within Pamatong's complex at a seaside area in Barangay Tablon at around 5 a.m., and at least six teams from the MLSAG, the Cagayan de Oro City Police Office (Cocpo), the military's Task Force Oro, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and Military Intelligence Battalion of the Army's Fourth Infantry Division.

Pamatong inherited the area after its owner, another fringe cult-like individual named Edmundo Pamintuan, died in 2002. Pamatong was Pamintuan's lawyer. Pamintuan named his group Back to Christ Discovery Crusade.

Many of the members of the group, who disbanded after Pamintuan's death, were recruited by Pamatong, who renamed it as USA Freedom Fighters of the East (USAFFE) in 2003.

In recent weeks, dozens of Pamatong's followers have been arrested in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan cities for wearing military-like uniforms while refusing to recognize police authority.

Weeks after President Rodrigo Duterte was sworn into office, Pamatong also declared himself to be the country's "legitimate" chief executive, and even led his followers in several street march against the administration.

Cocpo Station 10 commander, Chief Insp. Evan Viñas, said Pamatong's followers were cooperative during the raid and no one was arrested although Pamatong himself and several of his aides, whom he described as "cabinet secretaries", escaped.

Seized at the scene were several crudely fashioned knives, a .45 caliber pistol with one full magazine and two hand grenades.

The raiding team also discovered in the area a Philippine flag hoisted upside down and another hoisted United States flag in front of a house with the label "The Poorest Malacañan Palace."

Pamatong has had many runs-in with the law.

In 2014, Pamatong was arrested in connection with the bombing of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3 in September . In the same year, he was also accused of putting metal spikes on Edsa after the Commission on Elections declared him a nuisance candidate for the presidential race.

In 2010, he was briefly jailed for contempt.

Despite his antics, Pamatong remains to be a member of the Philippine Bar and could practice law anywhere in the country. (PNA)



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COTABATO CITY -- Police authorities in North Cotabato on Thursday killed two suspected drug couriers who resisted arrest during anti-drug operations at around 2 p.m. in Pikit town.

Chief Inspector Romy Castanares, chief of Pikit Municipal Police Office, said Edzrapel Dima and Bashir Maniling, both residents of nearby Pagalungan, Maguindanao opened fire on lawmen out to arrest them for allegedly selling methamphetamine hydrochloride.

According to Castanares, the police have received a tip from residents of Barangay Batulawan, also in Pikit, about the two men peddling shabu to minors in the village.

They were included in the police drug watchlist, according to Castanares.

A police officer posed as a buyer and secured several sachets of shabu from Dima and Maniling while other police officers closed in. The duo, both armed with hand gun and automatic pistol, opened fire on police authorities, triggering a shootout.

Castanares said the Pikit police personnel were out to arrest the two alive, but they refused and continued firing at law enforcers.
Hit in different parts of their body, the two were rushed by police to a hospital in Poblacion Pikit, but were declared dead upon arrival by attending doctors.

Recovered from the suspects were a 9mm pistol and a mini-Uzi submachine gun.

In nearby Tulunan town, police also arrested Joel Ambid, 27 and resident of Barangay Maybula for trafficking illegal drugs.

Ambid voluntarily surrendered to police last year and vowed to do away with illegal drugs.

Charges of violation of RA 9165 had been filed against the suspect now detained at Tulunan PNP lock-up cell.(PNA)



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COTABATO CITY -- Police in Maguindanao arrested on Thursday a village chair for shooting to death a constituent over still unknown reasons.

Senior Inspector Razul Pandulo, chief of Pagalungan Municipal Police Station, identified the victim as Rasul Padidis, 26, farmer and resident of Barangay Poblacion, Pagalungan and the suspect as Farouk Matalam, chair of Barangay Poblacion.

Pandulo said residents of sitio Titkayan, Barangay Poblacion alerted the police about the crime. Backed by military personnel, the Pagalungan police responded and proceeded to the site.

Residents said they last saw Matalam and Padidis in heated argument shortly before the incident.

At the village official's home, police found 37 empty shells for M-16 rifle the suspect used against Padidis.

Pandulo said Matalam did not resist arrest and is now detained at Pagalungan PNP lock-up cell.

The town police official said investigation is on-going to determine what motivated the village official to kill the victim. Probers are also verifying if Matalam's M-16 rifle was licensed. (PNA)



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BAGUIO CITY—Motorists are advised to avoid Kennon Road, the shortest route to and from this city, due to threats of landslide.

The Office of Civil Defense Cordillera (OCD-CAR), in its latest advisory at 2 p.m. Thursday, relayed the information from the Department of Public Works and Highways Cordillera (DPWH-CAR) that "due to threats of landslide brought about by the continuous rains, motorists are advised to take Marcos Highway or Naguillian road for safety reasons."

The advisory said one section of Kennon Road, particularly at Camp 3 is only one way passable due to mudslide.

While no major landslides or road cuts have occurred at Kennon Road in the past months that would prevent motorists from passing through the historic road, the DPWH maintains its advisory against taking the said road during continuous rains as rocks and stones fall from the mountains, causing accidents.

This condition of the road has persisted for many years following the 1990 killer earthquake that disturbed the slope of the mountain, causing landslides and rocks to fall, especially during the rainy season.

The standing advisory on Kennon Road is for motorists to avoid traversing it after two hours of continuous heavy rain to prevent any inconvenience or untoward incident.

Baguio City and the rest of Benguet have experienced heavy rains since the start of the week.

All other roads in the Cordillera region are open to vehicular traffic. (PNA)



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LAOAG CITY — Ilocos farmers will no longer have to guess the amount of fertilizer to be applied into their crops as a color-coded soil fertility map is now available in Region 1.

Fanny Miguel of the Ilocos Norte Provincial Agriculture Office said Thursday, the map serves as a guide for farmers in identifying the kind and amount of fertilizers to apply. At the same time, it helps identify the crops which are suitable to plant in a specific parcel of agricultural lot.

It will also provide them access to significant information such as extent of area surveyed (in hectares), irrigated and non-irrigated areas and the level or status of soil fertility.

The output presentation and turnover ceremony of the map to the provinces of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union and Pangasinan were held in San Fernando City, La Union Wednesday.

Miguel said this initiative is in response to President Rodrigo Duterte's directive to the Agriculture department to conduct a nationwide soil analysis to determine areas most suitable for rice farming and optimize production with the use of effective soil rehabilitation and fertilization.

In 2016, the Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM) led the national soil sampling and testing project in cooperation with the Department of Agriculture-Region 1 and concerned local government units.

"Based on the color-coded map, there is a corresponding fertilizer recommendation for rice. But it can also be used for other crops but with the guidance of agricultural extension workers to compute for the fertilizer requirement of a particular crop or they can also consult the nearest soil laboratory," she added.

Covering about 47 major rice producing provinces of the country, soil samples were collected and scientifically analyzed by the BSWM. Results were illustrated in a map for quick reference and understanding among target users. (PNA)



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DUMAGUETE CITY – The head of the Climate Reality Project of the Philippines is pushing for more political will on the part of government to ensure that the country will be directed towards the use of renewable energy and eventually ease out coal-fired power.

Rodne Galicha, Country Manager of Climate Reality Ph, in an interview Wednesday, said the use of coal-fired power is still "on the rise" in the Philippines.

"The challenge now is that we need to have the political will (to transition to sustainable, renewable energy such as geothermal, hydro, wind and solar)," he said.

"We know that the government right now, in some other programs like the war on drugs and corruption, has an iron hand," he noted. "But we hope to see the President and the government to have that very strong political will when it comes to renewable energy."

Galicha said the country's policies, especially in response to climate change mitigation and adaptation, are now geared towards renewable energy.

The Climate Change Ph head noted that the coal industry is now finding ways, "like on Facebook and they have their own trolls now", to "destroy" the image of renewable energy.

"Because we know that in the whole world there are big coal companies that stand to lose because of government's policy on renewable energy," Galicha added.

There are even targets and indicators of sustainable goals that are directed at transitioning to sustainable renewable energy, he added.

"Our role is to be a watchdog, to have a strategic engagement with the players of renewable energy to do their projects right that won't endanger and destroy the environment," he said. "So we talk to the renewable energy industry and practitioners and we like what they do. And if there are certain wrongs that they have done, we are here to advice them to do more and to bring back the balance in nature."

The Climate Reality Project was founded by former United States Vice President Al Gore. (PNA)



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BUTUAN CITY — The Philippine News Agency (PNA) has been recognized for its role in promoting and strengthening the advocacy campaign of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority in Caraga Region (Tesda-Caraga).

PNA, the state-run news agency, joined 100 other agency partners that received the Tesda-Caraga's "Service and Institutional Award" held at the LMX Convention Center, this city, Thursday (August 31).

Tesda-Caraga director Ashary A. Banto cited PNA for its "invaluable support and active involvement" in the agency's mandate to promote quality technical education and skills development in the region.

Banto said PNA's contribution helped bring the government "closer to the people by strengthening the promotion and advocacy campaign of the agency by informing the public of their agency's programs."

Tesda-Caraga also feted individuals, institutional partners and other stakeholders during its "Araw ng Parangal", which was part of its 23rd anniversary celebration anchored on the theme: "Malasakit at Pagbabago, Tesda Susi Sa Kinabukasan."

Created through Republic Act No. 7796 otherwise known as the "Technical Education and Skills Development Act of 1994", Tesda is tasked with promoting skills development of the country's human resources. (PNA/Noel B. Najarro)



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KIDAPAWAN CITY -- The Army on Friday recovered a huge arms cache from suspected communists, following a "timely and accurate intelligence information" provided by civilian informants.

Col. Roberto Ancan, chief of the Army's 1002nd Infantry Brigade, said 18 rifles kept in circular drums were recovered while two other Armalite rifles were seized from two suspected rebels.

Lt. Col. Harold Argamosa, commander of the Army's 39th Infantry Battalion, said in a radio interview that the two men who claimed they were farmers were caught at past 12 midnight while in the act of burying 18 M-16 Armalite rifles and two hand grenades in Barangay Katipunan, Kidapawan City.

"They did not expect us and about 50 meters from whre they were accosted was the guns' burial site," Argamosa said.

"Some have already been buried," he added.

Ancan said the soldiers arrived in the village at 12:30 a.m. and noticed two young men dragging suspicious sacks into a huge hole at Purok 3 in Katipunan.

"Our troops first observed what the two were doing," Ancan said.

"When accosted, the visibly surprised suspects tried to escape, but later arrested by soldiers," he added.

Argamosa identified the two suspected New Peoples' Army guerillas as Wowie Tagapia Boton, 19, a laborer, and George Landungan Cuyo, 20, a farmer, both residents of the area.

Argamosa said the village is listed by the military as "hotspot" due to heavy presence of communist guerillas belonging to Guerilla Front 53.

An intelligence report about the presence of two men with huge number of firearms prompted the 39th IB, North Cotabato Public Safety Battalion and Kidapawan City police to immediately proceed to the village, Argamosa said.

"The 18 Armalite rifles were placed in two separate drums," he told DXND Radio.

Argamosa said the rebels could have plotted a major attack against government forces or civilian communities in the city prior to the discovery of firearms.

"We commend the informant who provided us the timely and accurate information," Argamosa later told reporters without naming the informant.

Argamosa did not mention if reward awaits the informant. (PNA)



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TACLOBAN CITY-- About PHP11.25 billion of government funds meant for rehabilitation projects for areas ravaged by super typhoon "Yolanda" nearly four years ago remain untouched as of first half of 2017.

The National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) said the latest "Yolanda" progress report showed that only PHP20.94 billion of the PHP32.19 billion had been disbursed to implementing government agencies.

Of the total funds released, the social services cluster got the highest share of PHP8.71 billion, followed by resettlement (PHP6.09 billion), infrastructure (PHP4.28 billion), and livelihood (PHP1.86 billion).

"More than three years after Yolanda struck the region, there are still issues and concerns that impede the smooth and fast implementation of programs and projects in Region 8," NEDA Eastern Visayas Regional Director Bonifacio Uy told PNA Thursday.

The report also identified five major issues in carrying out post-disaster projects, all related to relocation efforts. These are: delay in the construction of permanent housing projects in this city and other typhoon-hit areas; substandard housing units; poor access to water and power in resettlement sites; livelihood assistance to newly-transferred families; and absence of permanent school building near housing sites.

Citing reports from the National Housing Authority, NEDA revealed that only 15,422 houses out of the 56,140 target for Eastern Visayas have been built.

Among the major setbacks are unavailable lots, land acquisition issues, procurement concerns, and lack of qualified contractors.

Uy said the central government and regional officials have been working closely to complete all ongoing projects within three years.

Last week, key regional officials held a meeting among members of an inter-agency task force for the unified implementation and monitoring of post-"Yolanda" rehabilitation and recovery projects.
The formation of task force is in compliance with Administrative Order No. 5 issued on Aug. 8, 2017 by President Rodrigo Duterte.

The task force is chaired by Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco with Presidential Assistants for the Visayas Michael Dino and for Special Concerns Wendel Avisado as co-chairs. Avisado is also the Presidential Assistant for "Yolanda" Rehabilitation.

The directive has listed 17 government agencies as members.

"There are some issues that can be better addressed and decided quickly at the highest level. We're very hopeful that this administrative order will help address the remaining works," Uy added.

The super typhoon, which struck central Philippines on November 8, 2013, is the deadliest typhoon in the country on record, killing at least 6,300 people. This city is considered as the typhoon's ground zero. (PNA)



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ILOILO CITY -- Around 1,000 Ilonggos gathered in this city Wednesday to pray for peace in the Philippines.

The "Pasa Lord Prayer Movement," an interfaith group, introduced a universal prayer which was translated in Hiligaynon. Together, participants recited the prayer that lasted for about a minute at noontime.

The universal prayer seeks God's favor, blessings for leaders, safekeeping of families and grace to live at peace with one another. It also asks for protection from foreign invasion, lawless acts, terrorism and war, as it seeks peace, unity, prosperity and transformation for the nation.

The prayer movement for peace stemmed from the ongoing clashes in Marawi City between the government troops and Maute terrorist group and from the problems besieging the country such as hard drugs, criminality and corruption.

In an interview, "Pasa Lord" co-convenor Niels Patrick Riconalla stressed the need for the Filipino people to pray to help ease the country's problems.

"Filipinos must be united in prayer for our country regardless of their religious affiliation," he said.

Riconalla encouraged all the Ilonggos to make "praying for the country" a habit especially every noon.

The "Pasa Lord Prayer Movement" was launched last July to encourage Filipinos to pray for peace in the country.


The participants composed of city and village officials, religious sector, and academe, among others, were joined by the movement's lead convenor and founder Lourdes Pimentel. (PNA)



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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY -– The Court of Appeals (CA) Mindanao Station has issued an injunction that temporarily stopped an order of the Office of the Ombudsman to dismiss Mayor Oscar Moreno from office.

In an 11-page order dated August 29, the CA granted Moreno a Writ of Preliminary Injunction (WPI) in order to "prevent grave and irreparable injury to petitioners, and so as not to render the instant petitions moot and academic pending their resolution."

The Ombudsman's decision to remove Moreno from office stemmed from a series of complaints filed by Antonio Nuñez Jr. for grave misconduct, conduct prejudicial to the interest of public service, serious dishonesty, and gross neglect of duty.

Nuñez accused Moreno of approving the lease of heavy equipment without a public bidding when he was the governor of Misamis Oriental.

The Ombudsman indicted Moreno for each of the six charges, issuing six dismissal orders for the embattled local chief executive.

Moreno said he got hold of a copy of the court injunction late Tuesday afternoon, issued by the appellate court's Former Special 23rd Division and was signed by Associate Jutices Louis Acosta, Edgardo Camello, and Oscar Badelles.

Lawyer Dale Bryan Mordeno, Moreno's legal counsel, said he is hoping the CA will issue a consolidated WPI just like what it did in its August 29 resolution.

The CA issued a single WPI for the Ombudsman's six dismissal orders, docketed as OMB-M-A-15-0530, OMB-M-A-15-0528, OMB-M-A-15-0529, OMB-M-A-15-0532, OMB-M-A-15-0531, and OMB-M-A-15-0533.

Aside from granting Moreno a temporary reprieve, the CA also prohibited the Ombudsman "to resolve petitioner's Joint Motion for Reconsideration with utmost dispatch."

Mordeno said Moreno is facing 48 complaints, 42 of which are still pending at the Office of the Ombudsman awaiting implementation.

He said it would be better for the CA to issue a consolidated WPI since most of the cases contain similar details.

For his part, Nuñez said he was dismayed with the CA's issuance of WPI but accepted the decision of the court.

He added his motive for filing complaints against Moreno is not personal but for the "common good." (PNA/Jigger J. Jerusalem)



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ILOILO CITY -- The government's Libreng Gamot sa Masa (LinGap sa Masa) program still has PHP100.9 million fund ready to be disbursed for medicine expenses of indigent patients in Western Visayas.

In a press conference Wednesday, information officer May Castillo of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Region 6, said that PHP37.1 million has been disbursed as of August 24.

Western Visayas was allotted PHP138 million being the pilot area for the project. The project started last March in partnership with the Western Visayas Medical Center (WVMC) in Mandurriao, Iloilo City.

The PHP37.1 million that was disbursed was used to purchase medications for 5,257 indigent patients.

The bigger share of PHP26.1 million was availed by 4,101 patients under the family head and other needy adult (FHONA) client category and PHP8.5 million for 1,017 under the senior citizens client category.

Meanwhile, PHP2.3 million was spent for 117 patients under the persons with disability (PWD) category and Php123,788 for women in especially difficult circumstances (WEDC).

She added that the remaining money will not be returned to the treasury even if the fund will not be fully utilized before the end of the year. Instead, it will still be used next year. The budget was sourced from the trust fund of the President.

Patients in the region, especially those admitted at the WVMC, are further encouraged to avail of the free medicines.

Requirements needed to be qualified as beneficiary include doctor's prescription, certificate of indigency and a valid identification card.

Eligible patients will be issued a DSWD LinGap sa Masa Guarantee Letter (GL), which indicates the needed amount for medicines. It will be presented to the pharmacy of the hospital by the patients to be able to get medicines. (PNA)



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SAN LUIS, Pampanga -- The provincial government on Wednesday released PHP750,400 as payment to 316 workers who culled fowls in poultry farms here following an avian flu outbreak.

Vice Governor Dennis Pineda led the distribution of the payment at the Dr. Emigdio Bondoc Convention Center here. Each worker was paid PHP P700 for each day of work. None of the workers showed symptoms of the bird flu virus.

Pineda said the provincial government hired the workers to speed up the culling of egg-laying chickens, ducks and quails in order to prevent the spread of the avian flu virus outside the one-km quarantine zone around Barangays San Carlos and Sta. Rita in this town.

"Thank you for helping save the poultry industry because culling was one way to stop the spread of the virus," said Pineda, also vice chair of the Pampanga Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.


The Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) and the provincial government, assisted by 300 soldiers, destroyed a total of 470,640 chicken layers, broilers, ducks, pigeons, game fowl, native chickens and quails within the one-km quarantine zone and seven-km control area, according to Roy Abaya, director of the Department of Agriculture in Central Luzon.

The provincial government likewise deployed a medical team that conducted check-ups, vaccinated 220 workers and gave Tamiflu to residents, farm, provincial and municipal personnel involved in the culling process.

The vice governor said Governor Lilia Pineda has instructed him to prepare a cash-for-work project for farm workers who will be jobless for three months. (PNA)



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ILOILO CITY -- Chief Inspector Jovie R. Espenido is now officially assigned at the Police Regional Office (PRO) in Region 6 (Western Visayas) following his stint at the Police Regional Office (PRO 10) in Northern Mindanao.

PRO 6 spokesperson Gilbert Gorero said Special Order 8834 from the national headquarters of the Philippine National Police (PNP) dated Aug. 29 relieved Espenido from his previous post and reassigned him to PRO 6.

The order was received by PRO 6 Tuesday evening.

"His designation will follow after his courtesy call on PRO6," Gorero said in a text message.

Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO) director, Senior Superintendent Remus Zacharias Canieso, was also relieved from his post and was promoted as chief directorial staff (CDS) of PRO 6 by virtue of Special Order 8833.

He will replace Senior Superintendent Nolasco K. Bathan as CDS who, in turn, will be assigned to PRO Calabarzon as acting deputy regional director for operations (DRDO).

Canieso's relief has nothing to do with the transfer of Espenido as he personally asked for a transfer as a prerequisite to a higher position during the visit of PNP chief, Director-General Ronald Dela Rosa on Aug. 14, Gorero said.

PRO 6 deputy director, Senior Superintendent Jesus Cambay, was temporarily designated as officer-in-charge (OIC) of the ICPO.

On Monday, President Rodrigo Duterte announced that the next assignment of Espenido will be in Iloilo to help in the fight against illegal drugs.

Espenido's reassignment in this region was warmly received by Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog, who was earlier linked by President Duterte to illegal drugs.

Mabilog, in a previous interview, welcomed Espenido's assignment here so he could report to President Duterte what the city government has done to address the issue on illegal drugs. (PNA)



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DAVAO CITY --The Department of Tourism (DoT) and three tourism players in Davao City on Wednesday sealed the deal for the implementation of the Tourism Industry Skills Program (TISP) aimed at capacitating industry stakeholders nationwide.

DoT partnered with Guide Union for Inbound and Eco-tours Destination (Guide), Letecia by the Sea Consortium, and Eden Mountain Resort for the project, which is funded by the Asian Development Bank and the Canadian International Development Agency (Cida).

ADB and Cida poured in P100 million for TISP with each region in the country getting an allocation of P5 million. TISP targets 40,000 trainees nationwide.

In Davao, Guide will train 50 industry stakeholders on Basic First Aid and Basic Life Support and Foreign language Course.

Letecia has 124 trainees for Back to Basic Training on Beach Resort Operations, Basic First Aid and Basic Life Support, and Open Water Diving Course; while Eden will train 85 industry workers on Asian languages and Customer Service Training for Frontliners, Basic First Aid and Life Support, System Repair and Maintenance Training like in Carpentry, Plumbing, and Electrical Installation and Maintenance.

During the signing ceremony at Marco Polo Hotel, DoT 11 director Roberto Alabado underscored the importance of the training for a stronger sector and in increasing the capacity of the local industry.

He said this is in preparation for the next surge in the tourism given that Davao will see more connectivity like Davao-Singapore, Davao and Kuala Lumpur.

Davao is also included in the package for the Qatar – Philippines connection. This, he said, will trigger increase in foreign visitors.

"We need to strengthen our local tourism industry. We have to prepare for this surge," Alabado said.

TISP intends to empower industry workers to provide quality service leading to customer satisfaction, meet services standards, increase employment in the tourism sector, improved income opportunities, increased competitiveness of the Philippine Tourism Industry, and increased tourist arrivals and tourism receipts.

This is the second implementation of TISP. The first was also funded by ADB and Cida.

Director Ma. Rica Bueno of the DoT said TISP implemented in 2014 in four pilot areas: Davao, Cebu, Bohol, and Palawan. An evaluation of the funders showed success in terms of profitability of the enterprises.

The impact of the training was on food sale, lessening of staff turnover, and workers gained more confidence in their work places.
With the success of the pilot run, Bueno said an extension was decided. The P100 million funding for the year will be for one year only.

DoT undersecretary Alma Jimenez said this should be a good time to clean the house not to capacitate industry workers but passage of ordinances to instill discipline because there is a strong mode of obedience, and planning to narrow the gap requirements of the industry in terms of manpower.

Jimenez emphasized on acquiring necessary competencies and skills. She said there are many workers in the industry but lack the necessary skills.

Jimenez said this will also improve the country's competitiveness in tourism and address the concerns of the Philippine Tourism Human Resources Development Plan. (Lilian C. Mellejor/PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) filed criminal charges against two policemen for the killing of a soldier in the province of Zamboanga del Sur, a police official said Wednesday.

Chief Insp. Helen Galvez, Police Regional Office-9 (PRO-9) information officer, said the case of murder was filed on Tuesday before the Zamboanga del Sur Provincial Prosecutor's Office.

Galvez named the policemen-respondents as PO2 Ronald Zeros and PO1 Michael Bulanday, both of Aurora Municipal Police Station, Zamboanga Del Sur.

They were charged over the killing of Cpl. Rodilo Bartolome on August 23 in Barangay Monte Alegre in Aurora town.

Bartolome was assigned with the Army's 53rd Infantry Battalion and presently detailed in embattled city of Marawi since May.

He just disembarked from a passenger bus on his way to visit his family in Barangay Kanipay, Midsalip, Zamboanga del Sur when he was killed.

The two policemen were checking the reported presence of a gunman when they allegedly shot Bartolome, who was clad in civilian clothes. (TPGJR/PNA)



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PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan – For its outstanding nutrition programs on children, a southern Palawan village won the 2016 Regional Outstanding Barangay Nutrition Committee award in the recently held Regional Nutrition Awarding Ceremony in the Mimaropa region.

The award was given to Barangay Panacan in the municipality of Narra.

A media bulletin quoted Provincial Nutrition Action Officer (PNAO) Rachel Paladan as saying that Barangay Panacan was recognized for its "outstanding leadership in the implementation of nutrition programs on children."

Data from the Provincial Nutrition Office show that the town of Narra is second to San Vicente that has the lowest malnutrition prevalence rate (MPR) at 4.59 percent.

The award was received by Barangay Chairman Ferdinand Zaballa with Mayor Lucena Demaala and Paladan at Acacia Hotel in Muntinlupa on August 22.

The northern Palawan town of San Vicente also received an award for qualifying as a finalist in the 2016 Outstanding Municipalities Green Banner Award along with the selection of Rosie Asuela as one of the finalists in the Outstanding Regional Barangay Nutrition Scholar (BNS).

The regional award on nutrition is a program under the National Nutrition Council and the Department of Health (DOH), where health employees, institutions, and local leadership are recognized for efforts against malnutrition in their areas. (PNA)



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ZAMBOANGA CITY -- The Blood Bank of the Philippine Red Cross-Zamboanga Chapter has discovered three bags of donated blood were positive of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) while another three are still subject to confirmatory test.

The bags of contaminated fluid were among those donated to the PRC Blood Bank since January this year.

Nimfa Linao, PRC Blood Bank medical technologist, on Wednesday disclosed the bags of blood were found to be contaminated with HIV through laboratory analysis.

The Department of Health's (DOH) Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) already confirmed this while the results of the other three have yet to be released.

Linao added that all bags of donated blood are being tested for HIV, Hepatitis B and C, Syphilis and Malaria.

Last year, eight bags of donated blood were found positive of HIV.

"We screen the donor while the blood is being checked to determine it is free from diseases," Linao said.

Linao said the donor of HIV-positive blood was immediately referred to the City Health Office Wellness Center for medication and counseling. (PNA)



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DAVAO CITY – The Davao City Investment and Promotion Center (DCIPC) has granted incentive package to three big projects worth P12 billion.

The three projects – a feedmill, low-cost housing, and a green project -- came in during the first quarter of this year.

Also under review are four other projects worth P400 million that all sought tax incentive covering a three-year fiscal and incentive on real property tax for two years.

"Hopefully the Board of DCIPC can act on them (four projects) by October," said Lemuel Ortonio, head of DCIPC.

Ortonio said there are other new businesses that did not apply for incentives, but the city will extend services in securing permits and refer them to the right agencies for the smooth processing of the required permits.

Meanwhile, Ortonio said the city's Business Bureau is in the process of perfecting the system on business permit application procedure from three to two days provided that the applicants submit complete and correct corresponding documents otherwise it will be sent back to them.

The city government has been riding high on positive business climate.

Ortonio said that in the first half of the year, the city's Business Bureau registered a total value of investments a little over P247 billion which is higher by P17 billion as compared to 2016 annual data of P230 billion.

Also, the city posted a six percent increase in the number of businesses from 32,000 in 2015 to 38,000 in 2016.

Ortonio said he will still discuss with the Business Bureau on the total investment targets for the remaining months of 2017.

The city is also coming up with industry profile of different investments. DCIPC started the profiling for the agri-business, health and wellness, and property development.

"We saw this as an effective measure so we would know whether there is a need to invite more on these type of investments," he said.

He said DCIPC also received several unsolicited proposals mostly on solid waste management and street lighting projects under the Private Public Partnership (PPP) scheme.

"What we did was provide the prospective investors the requirements so they could comply and these will be reviewed by the Davao City PPP secretariat," Ortonio said. (Digna D. Banzon/PNA)



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COTABATO CITY -- Another priest of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) succumbed to cardiac arrest Wednesday night.

"At the time of his death, he was assigned at NDU residence. He expired at the Notre Dame Hospital at about 9:05 p.m. after receiving the last rite and in the presence and company of his fellow Oblates, Order of Preachers sisters and some relatives," Fr. Eliseo Mercado, OMI said of Fr. Manuel "Manny" Mina.

He was 71 years old.

Fr. Mina was the second Oblate priest to have died this month. Last August 7, Fr. Elino "Eling" Isip, OMI, also died in Quezon City.
Interment for Fr. Mina is yet to be announced.

The OMI is a congregation of missionaries that included His eminence Orlando Cardinal Quevedo, OMI, DD, archbishop of Cotabato and Jolo Bishop Angelito Lampon, OMI, DD.

The congregation has been in difficult missions around the world, including Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. They are into various ministries, including education, parishes, inter-religious dialogues, media, livelihood assistance and services to poor communities.

Many of its missionaries experience violence while performing missionary works in Sulu and Tawi-Tawi missions. An Oblate Bishop was brutally killed in Sulu along with several other OMI priests. Some were kidnapped by extremist groups.

But that did not stop the Oblates from "daring the undared" and continue missionary works among the less fortunate brethren belonging to other faith.

Fr. Mina was born in Alcala, Cagayan Valley. Before joining the Oblates, he aspired to become a veterinarian taking Veterinary Medicine at the University of the Philippines. Then he moved to Mindanao where he took accountancy course at Oblate-run Notre Dame University in Cotabato City.

Fr. Mercado said Fr. Mina's parents influenced him to join the priesthood. "His desire to become a priest was nurtured by his parents during his childhood, in their example of a life giving and self-sacrificing love for each other and for their children," Mercado said.

"The first Oblate priests, whom he met, were foreigners and he was impressed by their presence in our islands who were so far from their homes and yet so dedicated to their missionary work," he added.

His desire to become an Oblate was further boosted by the good examples shown by the young Oblate seminarians. "(That) fostered his vocation to become an Oblate," Fr. Mercado said.

Then Oblate provincial superior, Fr. Joseph Milford, OMI, the native of Cagayan Valley went straight to the OMI Novitiate seminary in 1967 without passing through the Juniorate formation stage.

He was ordained priest on March 27, 1976 and his first assignment was as assistant parish priest of Midsayap, Cotabato from May 1976 to August 1977 (and again in May 1978) and of Banisilan, Cotabato (then an isolated and almost inaccessible parish) from August of 1977 to March 1978.

Mercado said when the Oblates opened a parish in Caloocan City, Fr. Mina became its first parish priest. As parish priest of Birhen ng Lourdes, Bagong Baryo in Caloocan, Fr. Mina worked mostly with the urban poor "whose conditions cry out for justice."

"They helped me become more aware what it means to be a real Oblate. They accept you not because you are a priest but because they see that you are willing to throw in their lot with them," Mercado then quoted Fr. Mina in an article posted on the OMI newsletter.

After his parish assignment in Caloocan, Fr. Mina became NDU chaplain. He also supervised the NDU campus ministry programs.

His expertise in formation of young Oblates brought him to the OMI Juniorate seminary inside the NDU campus in 1985. At the same time, Fr. Mina taught Philosophy among Oblate seminarians.

From NDU, Fr. Manny became the Novice Master of the OMI Novitiate in Tamontaka, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao. "He accompanied seminarians, young people and professionals who seek to give their life to God as one with us," Fr. Mercado said.

He then went for a renewal program at St. Louis University in the US where he deepened his formation ministry.

Upon his return, Fr. Mina, according to Fr. Mercado, became director of the postulants, a stage in OMI formation where Fr. Mina accompanied young professionals in search of their vocation as Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

From formation duties, he was assigned to the Oblate Missionary center in Fairview, Quezon City where he engaged in retreat work.
Fr. Mercado said Fr. Mina was a good cook and he loved to cook, especially Ilocano dishes.

Fr. Mina became Superior of the OMI Scholasticate from May 1998 to 2000 and elected to the OMI Provincial Council in charge of the Formation.

"Manny go to God and pray for us," Fr. Mercado said of his confrere.(PNA)



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GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- The provincial government in South Cotabato is set to launch a new anti-poverty convergence program that will assist the development of impoverished communities in parts of the province.

South Cotabato Gov. Daisy Avance-Fuentes said Thursday preparations are underway for the rollout of the program by next month, in partnership with various national government agencies and non-government organizations (NGOs).

Dubbed as "Convergence Program for Poverty Reduction of South Cotabato," she said the initiative aims to empower and transform poor communities into productive areas through the provision of basic services and development projects.

She said at least 20 government agencies and NGOs have initially pledged to support the program, which would be launched on Sept. 15 at its pilot site at sitio Traanlatang, Barangay Kematu in Tboli town.

"They agreed to pool their resources to address the basic unmet needs of residents and develop the area," the governor said.

Fuentes said the participating entities initially pledged to pour in a combined P1 million for the implementation of convergence programs and projects in the area in the next three years.

She said these included the improvement of the sitio's roads; implementation of capability and capacity training for livelihood, health, financial literacy and community empowerment; provision of arm chairs and other construction materials for its school; conduct of feeding programs; and, installation of additional sanitary toilets.

The Oblates of Notre Dame-Hesed Foundation Inc. specifically committed to assist in the empowerment of women and children as well as in capacity development for sitio governance and family decision-making, while Maguindanao Development Foundation, Inc. eyes to assist community empowerment through peace building.

The Rotary Club of Marbel, Mahintana Foundation Inc., and the South Cotabato Foundation Inc. will help in the conduct of feeding programs and trainings on community-led total sanitation, financial literacy and adoption of "Smart" agriculture practices.

RD Foundation will provide 50 armchairs with six sets of kiddie tables and chairs for the sitio's Day Care Center, while the South Cotabato Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation will assist in the construction of sanitary toilets with septic tanks, provide additional arm chairs and assist in the opening of a community store.

A group of technical-vocational schools will provide skills training on food processing, electrical installation and welding for interested residents of sitio Traanlateng, and mining firm Tribal Mining Corp. will support the Alternative Learning System program, the construction of school buildings and provision of arm chairs.

T'boli town's Minahang Bayan Association will assist in the energization of households in the area.

For government agencies, the Department of Public Works and Highways said they will start the concreting of a road network going to Hidak Falls that will pass through Sitio Traanlatang and three other sitios of Barangay Kematu.

The Department of Education Division Office will assist the processing of the land title for the sitio's school and support its five newly-hired teachers.

For the environment and human security component, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Provincial Environment Management Office will pursue roadside greening and riparian development through the cash-for-work scheme.

The Department of Labor and Employment and the Department of Trade and Industry will provide entrepreneurial training and assist a local coffee production venture.

Fuentes said the local government is overwhelmed with the support committed by their development partners for the initiative.
"We're always ready to receive your help through the means and processes that you want," she said.

To facilitate the proper implementation of the program, the provincial government has designated a convergence officer who will handle the processing of the grants and aids.

It will also establish a monitoring body to ensure that the program will be sustained. (PNA)

 



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ILOILO CITY -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) will review next week the country's protocol in responding to avian influenza, Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said Wednesday.

The current protocol followed by the government, according to Piñol, severely impacted the poultry industry. It required the closure of all poultry farms within the one-kilometer radius of the outbreak site and the banning of poultry products from within the seven-kilometer radius from where the outbreak was reported.

"We realized that by instituting the old protocol, we actually adversely affected the business," he said.

He cited the experience of European countries where poultry farms within the one-kilometer radius are placed under observation instead of being shut down. Affected fowls are then culled, he said.

He, however, said the government should ensure that the problem is contained as it couldn't afford to take chances.

He also noted that the "experience now has made us more prepared for any eventuality."

Piñol said the government has succeeded in handling the bird flu outbreak in San Luis, Pampanga and Jaen and San Isidro in Nueva Ecija within 18 days.

PNA Central Luzon has earlier reported that a total of 470, 640 chicken layers, broilers, ducks, pigeons, game fowl, native chickens and quails within the one-km quarantine zone and seven-km control area were destroyed to contain the spread of the avian flu virus.

Piñol added that poultry farms affected were also compensated. An initial fund of PHP29 million was released to the affected sector.

Piñol said he is set to sign an order lifting the ban on the seven-kilometer radius. (PNA)



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GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- Police tightened security in the entire city in time for the five-day 19th Tuna Festival that will formally open on Friday, Sept. 1.

Chief Insp. Geovanni Ladeo, chief of city police's public safety company, said Thursday that all police units in the city have been ordered to step up security measures in line with the festivity.

He said around 1,200 police personnel and elements from other support security units have been deployed in festival venues, especially at the city's oval plaza grounds, and other areas where crowds will converge.

The enhanced security measures are part of the comprehensive security plan earlier laid out by the city police and the Army-led Joint Task Force (JTF) GenSan.

"It's a multi-layered security plan, focusing on measures to ensure the safe, smooth and orderly conduct of the festival," he said in a statement.

Ladeo said the security measures included the conduct of regular mobile operations under operation plans or Oplans Sita and Kapkap.

Aside from elements from the JTF GenSan, he said the security operations are being augmented by personnel from the Police Regional Office-12, the city's civil security unit and force multipliers from barangay peacekeeping teams.

He urged the public to be extra vigilant and immediately report suspicious personalities and activities.

"We advise the public to be vigilant and be aware of personalities who are coming in their barangays," Ladeo said.

Col. Adonis Bajao, JTF GenSan commander, said the city's security situation remains stable quoting their own monitoring.

He said they have adopted all necessary measure to maintain such status, especially during the festival week from Sept. 1 to 5.

Aside from the Tuna Festival, the city will host the annual National Tuna Congress on Sept. 6 to 8 that is expected to gather around 500 domestic and foreign delegates.

The city will also host the first-ever Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines-East Asean Growth Area or BIMP-Eaga arts and culture festival dubbed "Budayaw" on Sept. 20 to 24.(AVE/PNA)



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TACLOBAN CITY -- The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) regional office here has stepped up its monitoring against harvesting and trading of shellfish from bays affected by red tide.

The BFAR's Fisheries Protection Law Enforcement Group (FPLEG)  confiscated on Thursday PHP900 worth of mussels reportedly gathered from red tide affected Maqueda Bay in Samar province during an inspection at the public market in this city.

"We will be burying the seized mussels at the Coastal Resource Management Center BFAR in Diit village to avoid future harm," said FPLEG head Reynato Galan.

The team also inspected landing areas and markets in Babatngon, Leyte and Villarreal, Samar to prevent selling of shellfish from affected bays. The fisheries bureau had set up FPLEG stations to monitor compliance to the shellfish ban.

Identified as red tide positive are Matarinao Bay in Quinapondan, Salcedo, General McArthur, and Hernani, Eastern Samar; Irong-irong Bay in Catbalogan City and Tarangnan, Samar; Maqueda Bay in Jiabong, Samar; Villareal Bay in Villareal, Samar; Carigara Bay in San Miguel, Barugo, Carigara, Capoocan, and Babatngon in Leyte; and coastal waters of Daram, Samar.

BFAR has partnered with the maritime police, Philippine Ports Authority, police public safety battalion, Philippine Fisheries Development Authority, and local government units to carry out an intensified fisheries checkpoint in the region.

The bureau reiterates its public advisory to refrain from eating, harvesting, marketing, and buying bivalve marine products and Acetes sp. (small crustaceans) from affected bays until such time that the toxicity level has gone down below the regulatory level.

Fish, squid, shrimp and crab are safe to eat "provided that they are fresh and washed thoroughly and internal organs such as gills and intestines are removed before cooking," according to BFAR.

Red tide is a term used to describe a phenomena where the water is discolored by high algal biomass or the concentration of algae. The discoloration may not necessarily be red in color, but it may also appear yellow, brown, green, blue or milky, depending on the organisms involved. (PNA)



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GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- The provincial government of South Cotabato is targeting another record year for mining and quarry tax revenues as it posted total collections of around P11.2 million in the first seven months of the year.

Siegfred Flaviano, Provincial Environment Management Office (Pemo) head, said Thursday their collections from January to July was slightly higher than the recorded figures in the same period last year that reached a monthly average of P1.56 million.

During the first six months, he said their average monthly collection was at P1.59 million and the actual collection in July reached P1.66 million.

"Our recorded collections increased steadily since January and we're now on track to surpass our total revenues last year," Flaviano said in a statement.

A report released by Pemo showed that the province's total receipts from sand, gravel and mining taxes reached a total of P11,247,158.82 from January to July.

The provincial government's share from the quarry and mining tax collections has so far reached P4,424,274.41.

The provincial imposition under quarry and mining covers sand and gravel tax, mining tax, mining permit fee, ore transport fee, occupational mining tax, verification fee, filing fee, permit fee, projection fee, processing fee, fines/penalties/surcharges, and miscellaneous (delivery receipts).

Last year, the province's mining and quarry tax collections reached an "all-time high" of P18.743,092.83.

Pemo said such figure was the highest since the creation of their office in 2007. The previous record was P15,790,315.30 generated in 2012.

Flaviano attributed their improved collection performance to their intensified monitoring and enforcement activities against illegal quarry and mining operations in the province.

He said they have been regularly checking the operations various quarry and small-scale mining ventures to ensure that they are compliant with the local government's regulations.

The provincial government has made strides these past years in terms of the regulation of small-scale mining activities in the province due to the implementation of its "MinahangBayanihan" program in the gold rush town of T'boli.

The program mainly aims to promote sustainable small-scale mining by responding to current issues and concerns affecting the sector as well as the integration and convergence of good governance practices.(AVE/PNA)



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DAVAO CITY -- After a three-month season closure, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR 11) opened on Thursday the Davao Gulf to small to large-scale fishing activities.

The closed season from June to August is the spawning period of small pelagic fishes that BFAR implemented four years ago, in partnership with the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Interior and Local Government through Administrative Order (JAO) No. 02 "Establishing a Closed Season for the Conservation of Small Pelagic Fishes in Davao Gulf."

The implementation of the Davao Gulf Closed Season is also a joint effort of different stakeholders, partner agencies, and seaborne personnel.

It is considered as a major component for the Malinis at Masaganang Karagatan or MMK Program of DA-BFAR initiated by Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol under the management of DA-BFAR Director and Undersecretary Eduardo B. Gongona (PCG Ret).

With MMK's run, coastal communities are encouraged to become good examples of clean and improved coastal communities as well as enhancing and preserving their coastal resources and wildlife through the process.

Strict law enforcement and measures on seas are also observed during the Closed Season of Davao Gulf. It is considered as another supplementing criteria for MMK.

BFAR 11 has recorded two apprehensions from Jose Abad Santos, Davao Oriental for violations accounted as unauthorized fishing, use of active gear, employing of unlicensed fisher and unlicensed fishing gear during this month of August yet both cases are pending for filing of necessary documents from the local government unit of Davao Oriental.

Meanwhile, partner agencies such as government law enforcement agencies, local government units, associated academe and other non-government units shall be awarded with plaques and certificates through their meritorious works displayed during the observance of the Davao Gulf Closed Season this year.

Through the onset of the Davao Gulf Open Season, small-scale to large-scale fishing activities are anticipated to soar per quantity of catch as compared to last year's previous quarter.

Last year, BFAR 11 documented an increase of 9.5 percent in fish catch from Davao Gulf in 2015 due to the strict implementation of the closed season, especially in the increase in aquaculture and marine municipal sub-sectors.

The projects, alongside strong law enforcement group, are being implemented in the region. BFAR is also currently embarking on Basil, "Balik Sigla sa Ilog at Lawa", which aims to revive rivers, lakes, streams and other bodies of water which are home to some fishes but are destroyed due to human activities.

BFAR 11 is also plotting possible sites to re-establish and improve the current conditions on certain bodies of water which are yet to be identified by the regional fishery offices and local government units in Davao Region. (ASP/PNA)



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