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Bringing People to Jesus

He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated, the Christ). John 1:41

People become known for many things. Noah is known as a righteous man in an evil age. David is known as the man after God’s own heart. Peter is known as the outspoken disciple. John is known as the disciple whom Jesus loved. Judas is known as the betrayer. Paul is known as a fearless proclaimer of the gospel. Andrew is known for bringing others to Jesus.

The first person Andrew brought to Jesus was his brother Peter. As soon as Peter joined the disciples, he became the spokesperson for the Twelve, while Andrew remained in the background. It was Peter, not Andrew, who rose to prominence as one of Jesus’ inner circle of three. We do not read of Andrew resenting Peter; it seems he was satisfied to bring others to Jesus and leave the results to Him.

It is not surprising that Andrew found the boy with the loaves and fishes and brought him to Jesus (John 6:8-9). Andrew brought Greeks to Jesus, even though they were despised by pious Jews (John 12:20-22). There is no record of Andrew ever preaching a sermon, performing a miracle, or writing a book of Scripture. He is remembered for those whom he brought to Jesus.

Andrew is a good role model for us. Our job is not to transform people into Christians nor to convict them of their sin. It is not our responsibility to make people do what they ought to do. Our task is to bring them to Jesus, and He will perform His divine work in their lives.     Henry and Richard Blackaby .

ON PREVENTIVE SUSPENSION
By Atty. Chic Baluma
Published on Oct 22, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Public Officers under our laws are accountable to the people. They are to serve the people with utmost responsibility, loyalty and efficiency and act with patriotism and justice and lead modest lives.

Lately, our televisions, radios and newspapers are occupied with news concerning the preventive suspension imposed on some local government officials. The preventive suspension imposed on said officials most often has caused chaos and/or further rift between the supporters of the suspended officials and the supporters of the party responsible or having a hand in the suspension of said officials and/or those who are waiting in line to assume the post temporarily vacated by the suspended officials.

One of the officials meted a preventive suspension even managed to secure a Temporary Restraining Order due to “ the extreme urgency of the situation and … possible injury” if the suspension would not be restrained. This ruling of the Court of Appeals has defused certainly the apparent tension and heat created because of the officials suspension. Potential political crisis and massive street protest were avoided because of the court’s order.

While we always hear the outcry of the suspended officials, pointing political harassment as the root cause of the case, the imposing authority always emphasizes that they are just acting within the bounds of law.

There are many bodies who are given the power to preventively suspend government officials/ employees. Preventive suspension may be ordered by the Office of the Ombudsman, the Sandiganbayan, or the proper disciplining authority of the Civil Service. The President, the governor and the mayor possess also the power of preventive suspension in appropriate cases.

There are two kinds of preventive suspension of civil service employees who are charged with offenses punishable by removal or suspension. First is the preventive suspension pending investigation , under Sec. 51, Book V, Title 1, Sub Title A of the Administrative Code of 1987 and the other is the preventive suspension pending appeal if the penalty imposed by the disciplining authority is suspension or dismissal and, after review, the respondent is exonerated.

A preventive suspension is not a penalty. It is only a measure intended to enable the disciplining authority to investigate charges against the respondent by preventing the latter from influencing witnesses or tampering with vital records which may aid in the prosecution against him. A preventive suspension can even be ordered without a hearing, because such suspension is not a penalty but only a preliminary step to administrative investigation.

In criminal cases, a law calling for preventive suspension is found in Section 13 of R.A. NO. 3019 which provides:

“ Section 13. Suspension and loss of benefits.- Any incumbent public officer against whom any criminal prosecution under a valid information under this Act or under Title 7, Book II of the Revised Penal Code or for any offense involving fraud upon government or public funds or property whether as a simple or as a complex offense and in whatever stage of execution and mode of participation, is pending in court, shall be suspended from office. Should he be convicted by final judgment, he shall lose all retirement or gratuity benefits under any law, but if he is acquitted, he shall be entitled to reinstatement and to the salaries and benefits which he failed to receive during suspension, unless in the meantime administrative proceedings have been filed against him.

In the event that such convicted officer, who may have already been separated from the service, has already received such benefits he shall be liable to restitute the same to the Government.”

For elective officials, another legal basis is Section 63 of the Local Government Code. This provision provides:

“Section 63. Preventive Suspension-

(a) Preventive suspension may be imposed:

(1) By the President, if the respondent is an elective official of a province, a highly urbanized or an independent component city;

(2) By the governor, if the respondent is an elective official of a component city or municipality; or

(3) By the mayor, if the respondent is an elective official of the barangay.

(b) Preventive suspension may be imposed at any time after the issues are joined, when the evidence of guilt is strong, and given the gravity of the offense, there is great probability that the continuance in office of the respondent could influence witnesses or pose a threat to the safety and integrity of the records and other evidence: Provided, That , any single preventive suspension of local elective officials shall not extend beyond sixty (60) days: Provided, further, That in the event that several administrative cases are filed against an elective official, he cannot be preventively suspended for more than ninety (90) days within a single year on the same ground or grounds existing and known at the time of the first suspension.

(c) Upon expiration of the preventive suspension, the suspended elective official shall be deemed reinstated in office without prejudice to the continuation of the proceedings against him, which shall be terminated within one hundred twenty (12) days from the time he was formally notified of the case against him. However, if the delay in the proceedings of the case is due to his fault, neglect or request, other than the appeal duly filed, the duration of such delay shall not be counted in computing the time of termination of the case.”

The Ombudsman’s power of preventive suspension is governed by Republic Act No. 6770, otherwise known as the “The Ombudsman Act of 1989”, which provides:

“Section 24. Preventive suspension.- The Ombudsman or his Deputy may preventively suspend any officer or employee under his authority pending an investigation, if in his judgment the evidence of guilt is strong, and (a) the charge against such officer or employee involves dishonesty, oppression or grave misconduct or neglect in the performance of duty; (b) the charges would warrant removal from the service; or (c) the respondent’s continued stay in office may prejudice the case filed against him.

The preventive suspension shall continue until the case is terminated by the Office of the Ombudsman but not more than six months, without pay, except when the delay in the disposition of the case by the Office of the Ombudsman is due to the fault, negligence or petition of the respondent, in which case the period of such delay shall not be counted in computing the period of suspension herein provided.”

It can be argued that the reason for the shorter period of preventive suspension imposable under the Local Government Code is that political color may taint the exercise of the power to suspend local officials. The period set forth under R.A. No. 6770, “ The Ombudsman Act of 1989” is different, since it provides for a six-month limit. The Office of the Ombudsman, being a Constitutional body is a different independent body, in fact the Constitution has endowed the Ombudsman with safeguards to ensure immunity from political pressure.

While there is the possibility of abuse in the exercise of the power of imposing preventive suspension, there is no reason to strike down the grant of such power. The law provides for the proper remedies against abuse in the exercise of the power, such as a petition for certiorari under Rule 65 of the 1997 Rules of Civil Procedure.

Everyone must be guided by the principle “ That the voice of the people is the supreme law”. Preventive suspensions must only be imposed when necessary and not for any other reason. The welfare of the public in general must be given primary consideration.

THE CREEPY GLOBALIZATION: ITS IMPACT ON MIGRATION IN THE PHILIPPINE CONTEXT
(Part I)
By Yes Tirol Dumagan

Published on Oct 22, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Let me start this essay by saying that my mother is an Overseas Contract

Worker (OCW) in the Middle East. She has been practicing her profession as a nurse for around eighteen years in Saudi Arabia. Since her contract is renewable every ten months, she gets to go home on the eleventh and the twelfth months respectively which is actually equivalent to a fifty day-vacation here in the Philippines. That means we in the family get to see my mother 50 days out of 365 days a year. And numbers will not lie that of my nineteen years now in this world, I have just lived with my mother physically present in our home for about 900 days only, equivalent to even less than three years.

I have one aunt and one uncle who happened to be younger siblings of my father. No kidding, I only saw them every time they get back to the Philippines. And how are they visiting the Philippines? Well, every five years. So that means I only saw them for less than five times in my whole life.

All because the three of them migrated abroad. All because of globalization. There were so many times I am saddened by the truth that my mother isn’t with us for almost twenty years. During my childhood, during my high school days, I had always wanted to understand the feeling of a home having a mother physically present to guide and take care of the three of us, her kids â€" to help me in my puberty stage (because I am the only girl in our house aside from our house help), and to manage my two younger brothers who always engage in so many fights simply because at times my father cannot handle them both. I mean, there’s always a big and clear distinction on how a father and a mother trains and manages the household, right? But then again this thinking has always been overruled by the fact that it is but about family survival and “good” living that pushed my mother for this option. Let me also stress that my father never wanted this idea of my mom leaving us to find a higher-compensated job abroad. My father had been the Chief Executive for 12 years and now a local legislator in one of the towns in Bohol. This idea of average and simple living in terms of economic wealth (because a town in the provinces is really poorer as compared to the towns and cities here in the Metro) yet living in a community where people get to respect you because of the family’s political background is still not a weighted reason for my mom not to leave the country. After all, how much does a local official get as compared to an OFW's monthly salary anyway? My mother cannot just swallow in the idea of poverty creeping into all Filipinos as our country’s economy continues to flunk each day. On the other extent, I can’t blame my mother if she opts to work abroad for I know that all she is thinking right now, her very reason of leaving us and working overseas, is that she wants to give us fairer lives, better lives as compared to how people live in towns and provinces. I realized, I would not have been in UP right now if it isn’t because of my mom supporting me. The cost of living here in Manila is far more expensive than in my province. For instance, a meal here in UP would cost me P35-80 whereas that same delicious meal can only be bought for only P15-25 in my province. And this has been manifested through all other forms of living here in Manila as compared in the provinces so to say.

On the other hand, looking at my mother’s perspective, I cannot fully imagine how she basically was able to survive working in Saudi alone for almost two decades already. I can still recall when she experienced her biggest problem she encountered there as an OCW about five years ago. This experience she had is in fact a problem not just to her but mostly to all non-Arabian workers. In the case of the nurses there, miscommunication between nurse-patient will surely arise if for instance there is a culture gap (and obviously there’s really a culture gap knowing that my mom is a Filipino and all her patients aren’t). Some patients may not understand them the way others do. Some patients especially the natives of Saudi are really abusive to their rights as citizens of the country. Once these patients will actually file complain to the management to any non-Arabian nurse (mainly because of miscommunication), the Arabian government, without further and thorough investigation will automatically lean on to the side of the Arabian patient complaining so that the one non-Arabian individual will only have 25 per cent chance to win the case. Luckily, my mom has gained the administration’s trust thus she was able to win the case otherwise she would have been whipped 150 times or more if she had lose the case. This is only one of the many horrible stories our migrants experience abroad. The *** thing here is that my mom cannot actually do anything about it other than to abide more strictly to the country’s laws because obviously she cannot move and work here in the Philippines because of a very relatively low compensation here not even enough to pay for my college education. In other words, all these sufferings from culture discrimination, all these pains she experienced because of the fact that she is away from us, her family, all of these, she actually ate it all up for us, for her family. Never mind her condition there as long as she can bring hope and inspiration to her family, to me.

Needless to say, the impact of globalization on the very medium of migration has its pros and cons. But I would say more on the cons, as based to my experience.

On the next issue, I will be talking more on the definition per se of the term globalization and more on its impact in the migration side.

(to be continued)

A STUDENT’S RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS
By Atty. Gee Biliran
Published on Oct 22, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

The right to due process is a constitutional right. It applies not only to cases in court, but also to investigations in offices and schools.

Due process includes the right to be properly informed of the charges against the respondent or the investigated person.

Due process requires that before an investigating body conducts a hearing, the respondent should be furnished with copies of the complaint and ALL documents and statements forming part of the evidence of the complainant against the respondent.

Moreover, the complaint should clearly state the specific regulation/law violated by the respondent, as well as the acts of respondent which constituted such violation.

The investigating body should NOT proceed with the investigation unless the respondent is properly informed of the charges and their basis.

This requirement is meant to enable the respondent to properly answer the charges against her or him, to sufficiently confront the witnesses who testify against her or him, and to determine the evidence to present in her or his defense.

It would be in gross violation of the constitutional right to due process if an investigation is conducted and a decision is handed down without the respondent having been previously furnished with the complaint and all evidences against him or her.

Evidences against the respondent cannot and should not be kept in secret. Otherwise, how could the respondent properly defend himself or herself? How could he or she refute the allegations against him or her and assail the due execution, genuineness and truthfulness of the documents submitted by the complainant?

What would be the basis of the decision if the evidences of the complainant remain uncontroverted simply because respondent was not given copies of the documents submitted by the complainant?

Unless the respondent is given such copies, the issues of the case cannot be considered joined and the investigation should not commence.

The Supreme Court itself frowns upon surprise attacks in administrative and judicial investigations.

For the information of investigators in offices and schools, pleadings or documents cannot be submitted in court unless the opposing party is furnished with copies of such pleadings. Otherwise, the court would not accept the pleadings.

Copies of pleadings must be furnished the opposing party by personal delivery. It is only when such personal delivery is impracticable that pleadings may be furnished the other party by registered mail. Even then, the party mailing the pleading must explain in the document the reason for the impracticability of the personal delivery. Otherwise, the pleading is considered a mere scrap of paper.

It was, therefore, to my utter surprise when I was informed that a local school is conducting a purported “investigation” against a student without the student having been furnished with copies of the evidences against her. To my consternation, I was informed that the school refused the student’s request for such copies and had adamantly considered the investigation terminated.

The school even refused the student’s request for copies of the minutes of the proceedings during the supposed investigation.

The student was instead told to wait for the decision of the investigating body.

To make matters worse, the student was told by the school authorities that she would be given copies of the evidences against her only if she would submit her own evidences constituting her defense.

Such requirement not only abhorrently violates the student’s right to due process but also borders on stupidity. Sheer stupidity.

How on earth could the student submit her own evidences when she was never given copies of the evidences against her for her to intelligently rebut the same?

How on earth could the student submit her own evidences when her request for copies of the evidences against her was only met with stubborn refusal by the school?

How on earth could the student defend herself when she was not properly informed of the specific school regulation/s she had allegedly violated?

If there is any place where due process should be religiously followed, it should be the schools where students are supposedly “taught” and “molded” to become good citizens of the country.

Such arrogant high-handedness of the school very well reflects its double standard. While the school professes to be Christian, its treatment towards its own student shows otherwise.

How could the school teach and preach justice when it is not just?

How could the school teach and preach fairness when it is not fair?

How could the school teach and preach compassion when it is not compassionate?

My unsolicited advise would be for the school to strictly comply with the due process requirements before it dares hand down a decision against the student. Otherwise, the school would lose its moral standing in the community.

Worse, the school would be inviting litigations.

Texting: Evil or Good?
By Atty. Aleck Francis Lim

BusinessWeek magazine had reported that text messaging in our country is so unusual all over the world.

Over 6 billion texts messages are sent by Filipinos in the Philippines alone in a month, excluding the text messages sent by overseas workers to the country. This figure translates to a whooping 200 million texts circulating daily in every corner of the Philippine islands.

It’s amazing how we love to send text messages while the rest of the world prefer to call their friends and loved ones and rarely use the SMS service because it’s time-consuming.

For one thing, it is much cheaper to call than to text in other countries. And if we come to think of it, text does not offer the best way to relay the clearest message from one person to another. A phone call does, or a full-text email or a letter.

And this makes Globe and Smart a lot richer day by day. Globe’s and Smart’s amassing of profits somehow slowed down when the new market player, Sun, offered a non-stop, unlimited texting service.

It was such a beautiful package. With text unlimited, you can text until your fingers bleed. It’s like shopping until you drop, or an-eat-all-you-can allure. Who can’t resist that?

But one cannot text forever. As soon as you realize that texting eats up a lot of your time, texting time may also dwindles.

Here’s the marketing trick: if you buy a load for an unlimited text, chances are you may get tired of texting that in the end your load would not be fully used up.

This “tidal wave of texts,” as BusinessWeek puts it, is not about money at all.

Let’s talk about productivity and quality of communication. How many of us are interrupted in the middle of a very important activity when a text message arrives? And how many of us have to do a lot of typing on the phone keypad when our message is not often understood crystal clear at one sending?

This is not to mention the annoying interruptions that text does to a meeting, court hearing, church service, conference, or intimate talk. Then the interruption was not worth it because the text was all about a question on weather condition, “nag-unsa ka?”, or just a garbage gossip in town.

There are more than 30 million (and counting) mobile phone users in our country. It shows that 30 million people have to stop doing something every now and then when their phone beeps.

Well, what can we do? This is a personal option. No one can stop you from texting. You can do whatever you want to do in your cellphone. Some are using it for scam. And some can use it for cheating.

Okay, cheating. This reminds us of the nursing scandal.

As we have mentioned earlier, there are more than 6 billion texts circulating on the face of Philippine islands every month almost the same number of the total population of the whole planet.

Do you think the leakage of the nursing board exam had escaped in those 6 billion text messages? In two months, the texts would total 12 billion messages.

Of course, it is nearly impossible for a board passer to come forward and admit that he or she got an advanced tip on the exam.

And it is nearly impossible that the leakage was not nationwide. It only takes one send button for the whole world to know something, let alone for all nursing graduates to receive a tip.

Technology does a lot of wonder but some have refused to believe that for some personal reasons.

There is nothing wrong with texting as long as you use it for productive and ethical purposes.

As we reflect on the terrific number of text messages circulating everyday, may we start to evaluate our priorities. And may we realize that there is power in our mobile phones that can be wielded either for evil or for good.

Published on Oct 22, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Putting Bilar on the map
By Atty. Aleckoy Lim

In next year’s election, attention is being focused on the third district slate for provincial board members.

This is due to the fact that of the four incumbents for the four seats allocated district, three are expected to be vacated. Board Member Dionisio Balite is expected to run for congressman while Board Members Concepcion Lim and Godofreda Tirol are no longer eligible for reelection.

This leaves only Board Member Ester Corazon Galbreath as the shoo-in winner for reelection. Galbreath however is not expected to be reelected simply because she is the only returning board member.

She has given a good account of herself in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan in the two terms that she has served as board member.

It is not quite surprising for one who has been a public servant for the most part of her life.

Galbreath had been an educator who was known for her dedication. While others teach because it is what they are paid for, she was a teacher who loved what she did.

When she was elected as mayor, Galbreath showed the same dedication and hard work that she was known for when she was still a teacher. Although women mayors are not as rare as they used to be, she showed that she deserved to be one by being accessible to her constituents.

Other people who were suddenly given positions of importance were overwhelmed by their position, she remained the same soft-spoken and humble teacher that she was. This was one of the reasons why she was reelected until her term expired due to the constitutional prohibition beyond three terms.

As a board member, Galbreath is among those with near perfect attendance which is one indicator of her dedication to service. She not only comes in early and leaves only when the sessions are over, she also contributes significantly during the deliberations.

My sources tell me that she is also personally attends committee meetings unless there are conflicts in schedule. This is impressive because many board members send only their representatives to committee meetings when there are no reporters around.

There were stories that Galbreath is inclined to reclaim her old post as mayor but I personally do not believe this. One reason is of course the fact that incumbent Mayor Fanuel Cadeliña is her political ally who was her vice mayor.

Another reason is that she is doing well as a board member and deserves to remain especially since there will be new faces in the district after next year’s election. She is of course giving Bilar a good name by the quality of her service and I believe Bilar is better off with her in the SP.

Galbreath placed Bilar on the map as far as the SP records are concerned and she deserves to stay until she is prevented from seeking another term.

Published on Oct 22, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

By Loy Palapos
JIMMY LIBRES TORREFRANCA
THE CHAIN THAT LINKS TO DEVELOPMENT

Duty was what brought him back to Bohol to become the OIC-Mayor of Sagbayan and, perhaps, it is his destiny to be chosen by the people he has long envisioned of serving. A direct descendant of the first Mayor is the man running the show in Sagbayan and the municipality is experiencing a flurry of developments during the first-term of Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca.

The grandson of Baudilio Torrefranca, the founder of Sagbayan, Jimmy Libres Torrefranca was born on May 30, 1954 in Lahug, Cebu City. He is the son of Lucrecio Torrefranca and Esperanza Libres. His father was a charismatic leader who was fondly called Crensiong, the longest-serving Mayor of Sagbayan, starting in 1955 until 1971. Perhaps, this was Jimmy’s motivation to excel and succeed in life.

Mayor Crensiong Torrefranca’s siblings are all professionals working in Australia, Canada and the United States. Only the youngest, Robert, a former municipal councilor, and Jimmy have remained in Bohol.

Jimmy started his elementary education in Sagbayan and moved on to Divine Word College for his secondary studies. He was an outstanding student earning praises for his performance and hard work in school. Whereas his father wanted him to be a doctor, he dreamed of becoming a pilot; but it was not meant to be as he failed the physicals due to poor eyesight. He stayed at DWC for his tertiary education, where he earned his BS Political Science degree. He was adjudged as Best Actor and Best Debater during his college days, hinting at gifts that would be put to good use in the future. He wanted to go on with his studies and take up Law but he was eventually lured to Manila and went into business with his cousins, in the Torrefranca Company (TORCO) Industrial Sales, Inc.

He married his long-time girlfriend, Myrna Balani, in 1977. They resided in Parañaque and now have six children: Joan T. del Rosario took a course in Physical Therapy, and is now based in Australia. Valerie T. Narona is a graduate in Electrical Engineering. She is presently employed in a call center in Cebu, while waiting for better options associated with her course. Lesley studied at HNU and finished Hotel and Restaurant Management. Ernesto is enrolled at SWU for a course in Veterinary Medicine. Alyssa is taking up Nursing; while Jamille, the youngest, is a first-year secondary school student; both at HNU.

Jimmy is the third-generation Mayor of the Torrefranca family. Will a fourth-generation Mayor be at the helm of this Municipality which was founded by his grandfather? Projections are positive along this direction; but Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca still has a decade to fulfill his dreams of developing Sagbayan.

In 1986, after the People Power revolution brought down the Marcos regime, he was one of those chosen by President Corazon Aquino to help restore democracy in the Philippines â€" becoming the OIC-Mayor of Sagbayan. Leaving behind the flourishing family business in Manila, he heeded the call to duty and served the people, albeit in an OIC capacity. He came to Bohol with his family and resettled in Sagbayan.

In his short-lived term as OIC-Mayor, he was already able to lay the groundwork for the improvement of the Sagbayan Market and secure the donation of the lot for the new Sagbayan Municipal Hall building from Atty. Edilberto Gallares and the late Adelina Gallares-Mayuga. He also lived through an ambush at dawn during one of his visits to the barangays. He ran and lost in the 1987 election to the veteran politician Arthur Añana and lost again in the hotly contested 1998 election to Cesar Borja by a mere 166 votes. It was during the 1998 campaign period where he lived through his second ambush, which happened at noon, losing his Mitsubishi Pajero that was burned down during the crossfire.

It was during the years after his close defeats where he shifted his focus to doing what was good at â€" business. He became a licensed contractor and established his own company, Bohol JMM Trading, which specialized in waterworks projects. With his expertise and good name to back him up, he became one of the biggest suppliers of pipes and other waterworks paraphernalia in the Province of Bohol.

In 2001 he was again asked to represent the party of Governor Rene Relampagos in the town of Sagbayan. Although his family objected putting himself in harm’s way once again, he still longed to serve his fellow Sagbayanons and threw his hat in the mayoralty derby. In a dramatic twist of fate, Jimmy Torrefranca pulled out a stunning upset against his bitter rival with a runaway margin of 510 votes.

Winning the mayoralty was not the only success of Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca during the past election. His running mate for Vice Mayor, Pastor Gudia, and five of his municipal councilors were also elected on the strength of Mayor Torrefranca’s development-oriented platform during campaign. This paved the way for an unprecedented cooperation between the executive and legislative bodies for the development of Sagbayan.

Within the first six months of his term, Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca inaugurated the block tiendas in the Sagbayan market complex, the livestock auction building and the drilling source of the ambitious waterworks project that is now providing potable water to the Poblacion and the adjacent barangays. He also sourced funds for the purchase of a mini dump truck for the waste management program and a 90-horsepower farm tractor for the corn production program of Sagbayan. These projects garnered for him the Most Outstanding Municipal Mayor Award in the Public Service Category from Gawad International.

During his first term, a priority project was to provide potable water in every household in Sagbayan. To date, he has fulfilled the project, except in 4 barangays, where the process is still on-going. He will soon finish a 4, 000-seat gymnasium; while simultaneously he focuses on health care of his constituents.

Aside from his political endeavors, Mayor Torrefranca is also putting Sagbayan in the consciousness of locals and foreigners through Bohol’s latest tourist spot â€" Sagbayan Peak. An ambitious joint venture with his cousin, Allan Torrefranca, he is maximizing the potential of the natural wonders found in the municipality â€" the world famous Chocolate Hills, the lush countryside and a great view of the sea that separates the island provinces of Bohol and Cebu. Still in its infancy, Sagbayan Peak is experiencing a brisk influx of local and foreign tourists benefiting not only the municipality of Sagbayan but the whole Province of Bohol, as well.

Another joint venture between the Torrefranca cousins in the Sagbayan Farms. The six-hectare property houses a modern piggery complex using the latest techniques in swine raising. It also incorporates biogas technology brought in by a consultant from Cebu. However, this is not strictly an economic enterprise for the cousins, as they recently conducted a dispersal program to qualified barangay applicants in Sagbayan.

At the end of the day, Mayor Torrefranca finds time to relax and entertain guests at Sagbayan Peak, the place he calls “heaven on earth,” as he reflects on what he has accomplished and contemplates on the next step he has to take for the benefit of his family and his fellow Sagbayanons.

Mayor Jimmy Torrefranca demonstrates that a good name backed by a good education, hard work, a little bit of luck and a lot of prayers are the ingredients to a good life.

Published on Oct 22, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Playing By The Rules

With this elections now less than a year away, expect people to show their real colors. It is interesting to discover who people really are when there is so much at stake and the when the pressure heats up.

In theory, an election is supposed to be an opportunity for people to choose those that they think would be the right ones to serve in a particular position. As such, there is supposed to be a period when people will find out more about the candidates’ qualifications and their fitness to serve in the position they aspire for.

Under this principle, people who are not qualified for a particular position for one reason or another are therefore at a disadvantage to those who fit the bill. This is of course on the assumption that people vote on the basis of qualifications.

This is of course more honored in the breach. How else explain the many misfits not only in terms of their qualifications but also of their mental and physical infirmities. There are many who are obviously unfit but who still get the position for the reason that elections in this country are not exactly won on the merits.

One sad thing about elections is the tendency of certain candidates and their supporters to be more preoccupied with throwing mud and dirt against their opponents with the hope that this would adversely affect their candidacies.

Instead of expounding on their strengths, abilities and qualifications, they prefer to bring down their rivals probably thinking that they will have better chances if people believe their allegations.

What is sad about this is that it is not only the candidates but also their families who suffer from the black propaganda. This is perhaps one reason why many well-meaning Filipinos who could otherwise render better service stay away from politics. It is too dirty and demeaning to them to be part of it.

Of course, those who want to play dirty should bear in mind that they do not have a monopoly of issues and dark secrets. In digging out buried secrets and skeletons in the closet, they only unwittingly invite reprisals from their enemies. There is nothing more dangerous than one who has been wronged by those whom he shared pleasant experiences.

One of the saddest things to happen is when former friends go after each other’s throat without regard for decency.

As the race tightens to the elections, it is better therefore for candidates and their supporters to bear in mind the need to play by the rules. Elections are mere games that should be played fair and square.

Those who do not know how to play clean however should not be too sure about their tricks. For all they know, they might get a dose of their own medicine.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

57% cut in budget deficit eyed in 2007

THE government is not resting until it can hit an ambitious 57% target cut in the country’s budget deficit for next near, Finance Secretary Margarito Teves said during a press conference last week.

When it was miraculous enough to stave off a P256B in 2002 to P148B in four years, the country’s economic consultants now train their sights to cut the deficit down to P63B next year. How?

Not by levying more taxes, not on borrowing but relying more on our resources, he said.

By this, he means raising revenues by putting in 100% effort to religiously collect taxes and settle problems with tax evaders, Teves told reporters during the press conference.

And with every peso that the government collects in taxes, as much as P.40 centavos go back to the local government units so they can finance priority projects, he said while hinting that the LGUs tend to benefit more from a more efficient tax collection generation.

The P.40 centavos for every peso should also signal a transformation of the economic landscape in the barangays and open up even more chances for job generation. (rachiu/PIA)

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

LGUs can maximize its revenue collection

WANTING to contribute to the pooling of funds crucial for the infrastructure backbone and social services in support of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s economic blue print, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) asks for cooperation from local government units in this year’s attainment of tax revenue targets.

DISTRICT officer and lawyer Rogelio Balaga showed a data, which popped after the BIR tax compliance verification drive shows that several local government units may have been uninformed in releasing business permits to establishments.

Furthermore, the people could help when they demand receipts from the establishments they are dealing, BIR said. The receipts reflect the transactions and puts in to the government the corresponding duties due the establishment in forms of taxes.

The taxes again go back to the provinces in funds for infra and social services, Balaga explains.

The lapses have caused so much losses to the government, a potential source of funds to finance prioritized rural developments, Balaga shared during the weekly Kapihan sa PIA.

Before establishments could get the mayor’s or local business permits, owners need to secure a BIR compliance certificate, Zenaida Pancito, BIR assistant revenue district officer added during the forum aired live over a local radio station.

In their tax compliance verification drives, the BIR also inspects establishments compliance especially in posting notices and also sees to it that the establishments deals fairly with consumers according to the law. Non compliance means penalties which the establishment is imposed upon, Pancito said.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Livestock auction market assured access to ports
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

WHEN it rains, it pours.

For Catigbian, Bohol, recipient of more that P41M implemented and on-going projects from national and local funds, so much is coming, assures Representative Edgar M. Chatto, during the grand launching of the P9M livestock auction market Monday, October 16.

Chatto, Bohol’s First District Representative, who adopts the town as daughter of his hometown town Balilihan said it is crucial for the town to be connected to the main traffic and to the ports to boost the operation of its newly opened state of the art livestock auction market.

With this, Chatto’s good news centered on upgrading of crucial road links that would ferry Catigbian sold livestock to the ports and main markets.

“Before the end of the year, the funds for the completion of the Balilihan-Catigbian national highway is set for release,” Chatto disclosed. The Representative’s disclosure generated deafening applause of approval from no less than Mayor Roberto Salinas and the mammoth crowd gathered during the event which also opened three more crucial services to the people here.

The fund would then complete a little more than a kilometer of unpaved highway in Haguilanan, effectively upgrading transport of livestock from traders and sellers using the Balilihan access.

As if the good news was not just enough, Chatto continued, “when the Senate passes the budget for 2007, in there is the program for the Catigbian-Tubigon road.”

If realized, the programmed concrete paving of the almost 20 kilometer Catigbian-Tubigon National Highway also completes a highway loop that cut almost 8 kilometers distance from the circuitous Clarin-Tagbilaran via Loon, It gains about 15 minutes of crucial travel time and evades that regular traffic plying the Loon route.

In economic benefits, opening up the highway to regular traffic also opens endless possibilities for Balilihan Catigbian commuters and highway establishments.

With the plan, Vice Mayor Fortunato Concon also shared that aside from enhanced trading for his town, the stakes for the town’s tourism efforts get the ripples.

Sold as the land of caves (tigbaw) from where Catigbian may also have originated, the paving road network brings in the push for the town’s adventure tours that could eventually bring in fresh funds to its economy.

As this developed, Chatto challenged the residents here to contribute to the efforts of denying poverty a home to come up to, by engaging in productive activity in line with the town’s agricultural revolution.

Chatto, House Tourism Committee Chair has been acknowledged godfather of newly sprouted tourism ventures here in his district, along with the support of local officials. (rachiu/PIA)

P1.7-trillion countryside infra to spur fast economic growth

As part of her commitment to improve the lives of Filipinos in the countryside, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said her administration has allotted P1.7 trillion â€" equivalent to 4.45 percent of the country’s economic productionâ€" for the infrastructure projects of the government.

In a roundtable discussion with heads of concerned agencies in Malacañang this morning, the President underscored the need for infrastructure facilities that would fast-track the progress of more barangays and municipalities in far-flung areas.

“Infrastructure facilities are necessary to improve livelihood and uplift the lives of the average Filipino. That is why we are doubling the allocation for infrastructure as what I have stated in my State-of-the-Nation Address (SONA) last July,” the Chief Executive said.

The President said the money will be spent for the construction and rehabilitation of more airports, ports, national highways that would connect the existing Roll-On, Roll-Off Strong Republic System nautical highway, transportation facilities such as bridges, railroads, power and water facilities.

During the discussion, the President recounted that in the past, the government spent only two percent of the country’s economic production in infrastructure facilities compared to four up to eight percent by neighboring countries.

She stressed that once the infrastructure projects are completed, more jobs will be created in the provinces and the people will directly benefit from them.

“Far-flung areas which cannot bring their produce to the market, families which need to fetch water everyday, jobless people who can’t find work because nobody wants to build factories because there is no power â€" all of them will ben efit from these projects in the super regions,” the President assured.

Meanwhile, with the on-going Bohol Circumferential Road Project, the Bayongan Irrigation Project, and the rehabilitation of the Jagna and Talibon ports, Bohol continues to share with government’s infrastructure projects. Another project, as part of the president’s super regions, is the Bohol Panglao International Airport. (PIA)

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Chatto meets Fil-consuls in Dubai on OFWs plight

DUBAI, UAE - First District Congressman Edgar M. Chatto met Thursday morning with Philippine Consulate, Dept. of LaborLabor and Overseas Welfare Administration officials at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates regarding the plight of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).

Present during the breakfast meeting were Acting Consul-General Vicente-Vicencio Bandillo, Labor Attache Florencia Ardivilla and Welfare Officer Eduardo Mendoza, Jr.

The Philippine officials briefed Cong. Chatto that OFWs are contributing largely to the economy of UAE and are well-liked due to their love of work and good command of English language. However, it was also acknowledged that there are many issues confronting OFWs including cases involving breach of employment contract either by the employer or employee, violation of immigration and labor laws, and in some instances, alleged maltreatment by their employers.

After the meeting, Chatto and the officials came up with consensus recommendation urging all Filipinos aspiring to work in the UAE and the Middle East to take the Pre-departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) seriously and learn the culture of the employer’s country before the scheduled departure. It has been observed that many conflicts between employers and employees were traced to differences in cultural practices, thus creating gaps in the workplace. It was also discussed that aspiring OFWs must avoid resorting to Visit Visa as a scheme to gain entry in the UAE since this will not guarantee employment and will result instead to heavy penalties including possible imprisonment.

The Philippine Consulate and the Philippine Overseas Labor Office assured Chatto that assistance will be given to OFWs facing cases in the Middle East and those filing cases against their employers or recruitment agencies. It may be noted that lately, Chatto caused the release and repatriation of 23 OFWs including a Boholana who were held up in a well guarded quarter of the employer. Chatto visited Dubai enroute to Tehran, Iran, where he represented House Speaker Jose De Venecia and the Philippine Congress in the meeting of Association of Asian Parliaments for Peace (AAPP) with 39 member countries.

Cong. Chatto is the Chairman of the House Committee on Tourism and member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Special Committee on OFWs.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Livestock production for family enhancement

Bohol GOV. Erico Aumentado Monday urged the Boholanos to work doubly hard to further improve livestock production.

This with the inauguration Monday of the Catigbian Livestock Auction Center (CLAC) â€" the newest, biggest and most modern in the whole Visayas.

“Today will go down in Bohol’s history because the operationalization of the biggest livestock auction center in the entire Visayas spells new opportunities for farmers who, for so long a time, have been at the mercy of middlemen,” the governor said during the inaugural program timed to coincide with Catigbian’s market day.

The complex has a ramp where carabao, cattle and goats go down from the ferrying trucks and on to a digital scale. The livestock’s weight automatically flashes on an electronic board at the auction center.

While waiting for buyers, the animals are tethered in any one of 60 stalls in three buildings, or fed at the forage area. The complex has a big parking area and comfort rooms with water.

Aumentado said the production in the whole of Bohol can still be accommodated at the livestock center, hence the encouragement to farmers to produce more, especially with the implementation of the P37.6-million Livelihood Integrated for Food and Family Enhancement (LIFFE) for Boholanos project.

Of the amount, the Heifer Project International-Philippines funds P17.8 million. The provincial and municipal governments counterpart a total P19.7 million for the livestock, chicken and duck dispersal project with training and revolving fund components.

The latter provides capital for project partners who may want to engage in small businesses and enterprises.

Partners are required to give back to the group an offspring for dispersal or “passing on of the gift” to other members.

Meanwhile, Dr. Stella Marie Lapiz, provincial veterinarian said Bohol is a foot-and-mouth disease (FMD)-free province. As such, Bohol can export livestock anytime.

She said the CLAC has gone a long way from the original that was one of only 35 the late President Ferdinand Marcos decreed to be established nationwide in 1975.

As a complement to the project, the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) launched on the same day the rehabilitation of the Baang-Liboron-Triple Union farm-to-market road to make the hauling of livestock easier.

The P20.7-million 6.6-kilometer road forms part of the Agrarian Reform Community Development Program 2 (ARCDP 2) funded by the World Bank with counterparts from the municipal and beneficiary barangay governments.

Still complementing the auction center is the Farmer’s Information and Technology Service (FITS) Center launched the same day. It serves as a one-stop service facility nearest to the majority of farmers, entrepreneurs and other clients. It provides fast access to information and technologies in forms appropriate to the clients’ needs.

Still another project that a visibly elated Mayor Roberto Salinas took pride in having been able to bring to Catigbian is providing school buildings for the Mantacida National High School.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Bohol is Region 7 Most Business-Friendly Province
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

The province of Bohol under the visionary leadership of Gov. Erico Aumentado has reaped another award.

BOHOL has been adjudged as the 2006 Most Business-Friendly Province in the Visayas.

This is known from the fax message of Atty. Miguel Varela, the honorary chairman of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) and at the same time the chairman of the 32nd Philippine Business Conference Awards Committee.

The awarding ceremony was held during the Gala Night of the Philippine Business Conference last October 19, 2006 with Honorable Vice President Noli de Castro, as the Guest of honor.

Ma. Fe Dominise, the head of Bohol Investment and Promotion Center (BIPC) and some representatives of the Bohol Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCICI) headed by Mr. Norris Oculam graced the said awarding at Metro Manila.

The Most Business Friendly LGU Award is an undertaking of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in cooperation with other key national business organization in the country. This year’s award carries the slogan, “What’s good for the citizenry is good for business”.

The award is accorded to municipalities, cities and provinces that have demonstrated exemplary efforts on the concerns of implementing sound and business friendly daily procedure to promote trade and investment, accountability, transparency and efficiency in daily operations and promoting competitiveness. (Jhaz/PGMA)

Town to adopt its own Local AIDSAIDS Council

THE Local AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) Council (LAC) ordinance of the municipality of Carmen had undergone a public hearing last October 18, 2006 at the Carmen Public Market.

The ordinance which is sponsored by Hon. Nathaniel Binlod, the Sangguniang Bayan chairman of the Committee on Health, had underwent its 1st reading and is hoped to undergo its 2nd reading within this month and is anticipated to be approved before this year ends.

The Local AIDS Council will serve as the central advisory, planning and policy making body with regards to the prevention and control of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) including Human Immuno Virus (HIV) which causes AIDS.

The council will be chaired by the municipal mayor with the SB chair of the Committee on health as the vice-chair. The SB vice-chair of the Committee on Health, municipal health officer, municipal schools superintendent, municipal Social Welfare Officer, one representative from accredited organization of entertainment industry and 2 representatives from accredited non-government organizations actively involved in programs, activities and advocacy with STI/HIV/AIDS prevention will sit as the members of the said council.

Under this ordinance, all operators, managers, entertainers of entertainment establishment, beauty parlors, hotel, lodging house, resorts, barber shops and massage centers to attend seminars on STD/HIV/AIDS prevention to be conducted by the Municipal Health Department, otherwise no permit to operate shall be granted to the afore mentioned establishments.

All entertainers, masseurs and other similar occupation will also undergo compulsory weekly medical check-up (gram staining) which will be conducted on regular basis at the Society Hygiene Clinic of the Municipal health department and the results of the examination will be held in confidential by all health professionals and workers. It can be recalled that Republic Act 8504 or the National AIDS Law mandates the organizational of Local AIDS Council. (Jhaz/PGMA)

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Funds for agri-reforms left out in 2007 budget?

TWO days before the World Food Day celebrations and with farmers literally shouting their clamor for agricultural reforms, Akbayan Representative Risa Hontiveros Baraquel told Boholano farmers of a planned amendment to the Congress approved budget to inject the funds for agricultural reforms.

This came even before the Senate takes up the Congress approved budget for 2007.

Coming in as guest speaker in a gathering, which banners “Investing in Food Security by Enhancing Sustainable Community-based Initiatives, Baraquel said the amendment would put in P3.7B funds for fisheries and agriculture sector reforms.

That day, October 18, at the Metrocenter Hotel, Rep. Baraquel along with Bhutan Minister of Agriculture Lyonpo Sangay Ngudep and Department of Agriculture Undersecretary Jesus Emmanuel Parras were guests to the gathering of farmers from the Philippines, Laos, Bhutan, Thailand, south and Central Vietnam and the representatives from the Farmers’ Consultative Council.

Reasoning out the Akbayan proposal, Baraquel said the amendment only comes a measly 2% of the trillion budget, and that would define the country’s agricultural reform directions in the next years.

The infusion of funds, it if would be approved by the Senate go for the construction of small water impounding systems projects, development of sustainable agriculture technologies, establishment of sustainable agriculture demonstration farms, farm to market roads, post harvest facilities and resources planning to empower farmers.

Reiterating her party’s commitment for the promotion of farmer’s rights with the Peasant Week, the party-list solon assured of the government’s support to sustainable agriculture development advocacy and its strong bias for alternative agriculture.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Humabol marks 12th year, still chasing elusive dream

FACED with what they insist as a tangible threat in their perception of a systematic neutralization of vocal militants criticizing the government for failure to implement reforms, Hugpong sa mga Mag-uumang Bol-anon (Humabol) said the situation should ignite them to be even more avid in their demand for true emancipation from economic shackles.

Gathered at the Boy Scouts Headquarters Conference Hall for the 10th Farmers’ Provincial Congress after 12 years of existence, farmer municipal chapter leaders got re-oriented with the recent issues shared by their chapters and mapped out plans for the organization’s future directions and stands on issues.

Humabol Chairman William Boybanting, in an interview a day before the group elects new set of leaders said the group further strengthens its call for genuine land reforms amidst worsening economic crisis and what they consider as state terrorism.

Admitting that they have been on the other end of military harassments and abuses for “helping people advance their rights” Boybanting said their opposition to anti-farmer laws, decrees, programs and projects is part of the territory.

Mouthing his group’s position against the dams that failed to deliver the promised irrigation to their farm lands, Boybanting along with community organizer Walter Balonga said the water irrigation rentals have become an added burden for farmers who could not be contented with the use of the facility.

“We should be proud we produce the food that the country eats, but with the situation we are in now, there is practically nothing to be proud of,” Boybanting pointed out.

“Farmers are the ones producing food, but seldom are we seen that way. Many of our farmers are debt â€"ridden, the problem brought about by worsening economic crisis,” Boybanting said in Cebuano.

Until production is controlled by capitalists, until the government implements the genuine land reform, retake the areas set aside for oil plantations, amend protected areas and open up sustainable agriculture, then farmers could be mired eternally in poverty, he said.

Boybanting was especially vocal against proclamations over protected areas that shrink farmer’s access to arable lands and marine protected areas that restrict fishermen’s access to the sea.

Asked about his reactions on the economic miracle that the province has achieved with eco-cultural tourism, he said the poor farmers have yet to see food on their tables to feel the easing up of life here. Finally he laments the kind of tourism that limits the farmer’s agricultural lands when there were declared tourism areas. (rachiu/PIA)

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

“Follow the example of Bohol”, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo made this statement when she visited Samar recently.

The President cited the experience of Bohol, as she urged the people and local officials of the three Samar provinces to get cracking on the peace and order problem in the whole island.

Government development projects would not be enough to eradicate poverty unless the communist insurgency in the area is defeated, just like the way Bohol did with their insurgency problem.

The experience of Bohol, which used to be shunned by tourists because of the then prevailing communist insurgency in that province, has now become one of the tourist destination in the country. Good roads will not bring in tourists unless the NPA is defeated, as tourists want to be fully assured of their safety, the president added.

The president stressed that it was the dedication of its local leaders, in partnership with the military and the constituents of Bohol, that drove and defeated the communist rebels.

She even acknowledged this effort during her State of the Nation Address or SONA last July.

Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado and AFP 302nd Infantry Brigade commander Gen. Juanito Gomez were given a round of applause in that SONA address.

The President underscored the need for Samarenos to work closely with the military and police to restore peace and order to pave the way for real progress and challenged its leaders -- from the congressmen, governors, board members, mayors down to the barangay officials -- to work as a team for the progress of the whole island.

"Samar is waiting to be found as a tourist destination," but first the NPA has to be defeated, she added further.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

amping kanunay, boss Balong. uban ang pag-ampo sa dili pa mobyahe.

COURT OF APPEALS ON SELECTIVE RETAKING
By Yes Tirol Dumagan

I am sure that the Boholano nursing board passers jumped in jubilation when the Court of Appeals rules partial retake, allowing only selective retake to nursing board examinees who took during the second quarter this year. It can be noted that simultaneous rallies nationwide were being demonstrated as regards with the retake of the nursing board exams due to reported and proven leakage of the said licensure examination to some of its examinees.

I say good news to all the Boholanos who just passed the said examination because according to the CA in its release of rule just last Friday, “the nursing graduates who passed the licensure examination conducted in areas outside of Metro Manila and Baguio and those who registered at but did not attend the “final coaching” sessions of the three review centers suspected of leaking test questions may immediately take their oath as professional nurses”.

I say that this ruling is nothing but fair and totally impartial. I do not at any rate concede to the idea of the retake of all examinees to the said board exam. Why so? Firstly, not all of them cheated. Yes, there was cheating and it was such a shame to PRC to having had allowed or tolerated such a devastating act, but then there are still thousands of good creatures who underwent the said examination with all honesty, as compared to hundreds of them who had such malicious minds, who resorted to cheating partially because of their frustration and fascination to qualify themselves as professional nurses. Secondly, such a move would require big amount of funds from the government, which, I think, could be better allocated to other immediate needs of these students. Education. Why not appropriate all these funds to the education sector so the department would be challenged of the responsibility imposed to them â€" the responsibility to give the citizens higher quality of education â€" so that by the time the students shall be taking the board examinations, they will be very much confident that they will pass the said key towards achieving their professions. I think that these nurses-wanna-bes were just forced to cheat because they’re desperate enough to pass the licensure exam. I mean, almost everybody now resort to studying nursing because they think and feel that it’s the only channel for them to have a decent and prosperous living. A common Filipino farmer or fisher folk cannot actually get the kind of life that our nurses and their families are experiencing because of their jobs across the seas. Lastly, the retake of all examinees would only mean a threat to the credibility of the PRC. How? Though this would sort of impress the people of PRC’s primary decision to let all examinees retake the exam, this would only lessen their credibility as the country’s regulatory and assessment commission on how well or not the country’s studentry perform towards achieving their professions. If fairness is what they’re after for, then certainly such a primary decision is neither acceptable, necessary, nor beneficial.

With these reasons, I remain. I highly commend the CA’s rule with regard to this matter. Congratulations to the passers once again!

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Silent Rivers
Paul Borja
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Forty two years ago, American biologist Rachel Louise Carson published her book Silent Spring. The book would turn out to be a piercing alarm bell that riveted the world’s attention to the silent ecological devastation being wrought by massive use of chemical pesticides.

In her book, Carson, who used to work for the US Bureau of Fisheries and Wildlife but loved writing and poetry the most, documented the chemical warfare human beings were waging against the natural world. Many people now think that Carson, through her book, helped to fuel the environment movement that has now become a global crusade to save what remains of nature from the ravages of human destruction that continues without let-up today.

Carson mainly aimed her poetic pen at DDT, considered the most powerful pesticide the world had ever known. Unlike most pesticides, whose effects were limited to destroying one or two insects, DDT could kill hundreds of different kinds at once. DDT had been used during the Second World War to clear South Pacific islands of malaria-causing insects for US troops, and its inventor was later awarded the Nobel Prize.

After the War, DDT became available for civilian use, but very few people were alarmed at the environmental effects of this powerful chemical that was used indiscriminately as a “miracle cure” to stop the spread of insect-borne diseases. Taking her four years to write, Carson meticulously described in Silent Spring how DDT entered the food chain and accumulated in the fatty tissues of animals, including human beings, and caused cancer and genetic damage. Carson wrote lyrically about a nameless American town where all life â€" from fish to birds to apple blossoms to human children â€" had been “silenced” by DDT’s insidious effects.

For writing about DDT’s silent scourge, Carson was pounced upon by chemical companies. A chemical company executive complained: “If man were to faithfully follow the teachings of Miss Carson we would return to the Dark Ages, and the insects and diseases and vermin would once again inherit the earth.” For its part, chemical giant and now genetic engineering behemoth, Monsanto published a brochure parodying Silent Spring. Entitled “The Desolate Year,” Monsanto’s opus related about the devastation and inconvenience of a world where famine, disease, and insects ran amuck because chemical pesticides had been banned.

As it turned out, history and scientific evidence would vindicate Carson. US government-ordered investigation into the effects of DDT eventually led to the banning of the pesticide and prompted stringent regulation of all kinds of pesticides. Nevertheless, this development did not lead to the demise of pesticide use; and chemical companies did not exactly go bankrupt as a result.

On the contrary, the number of new chemical pesticides developed and commercialized and the volume of pesticides used worldwide have shot up phenomenally over the decades. Stricter government regulations simply challenged chemical companies to develop new product lines that skirted just within the regulatory standards and to package them more effectively to the public through the mass media. Whenever governments in the industrial countries banned use of certain pesticides, it did not become a surprise that these pesticides would find their way to or continue to be in use, legally or illegally, in poor and developing countries. These countries, including the Philippines, have literally become a massive toxic dumpsite.

Carson’s book came to mind when in Davao City last week, I met pharmacologist and toxicologist Dr. Romeo Quijano of the University of the Philippines â€" Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH). Dr. Quijano had been invited by a Davao environmental network to talk about the impacts of pesticides used intensively by plantations in many parts of Mindanao. Dr. Quijano is not new to the controversy, having been slapped previously with at least two libel suits for speaking out against the use of certain pesticides in plantations, in which some of these chemicals had already been banned in other countries. Dr. Quijano had documented and written about human illnesses and deaths attributed to chemical use in plantations, which prompted the libel suits.

A week before Quijano’s visit, Davao City papers reported of a massive fishkill in a number of fishponds in Tugbok district of the city. The fishponds, which were mainly growing hito, happened to be located within a river catchbasin where several kilometers upstream a banana plantation operated. Fishpond owners alleged that chemicals used in the plantation had contaminated the river that led to the fishkill downstream. They cited their observations of dwindling numbers of frogs and freshwater eels in the streams that feed into their fishponds as indicative of accumulating pesticide contamination. Asked for his comment on the matter, Dr. Quijano said that although the real cause of the fishkill has yet to be established through chemical residue analysis he raised the likelihood of chemical pesticides used in the aerial spraying of banana plantations as being the culprit.

Meanwhile, the group that invited Dr. Quijano to Davao City had a curiously familiar name to it: Panaghoy sa Kinaiyahan. It turned out Bohol had a lot to do with the name and the launching of the network. The network was their effort to bring attention to the continuing devastation of the environment and the gradual killing of our children by chemicals running rampant.

Asked about Loboc River, I told some Davaoeno friends that it remains a beautiful sight to see, just like in the movie, but not necessarily when it becomes too crowded with tourist-bedecked floating restaurants.

I said that the river runs quietly but upstream and in the hinterlands from where the river collects its sources, new plantations of an exotic species have risen from the ground and soon a factory whose sewage will mix with streams flowing into the legendary river.

They say silent rivers run deep. Were Rachel Carson still alive today, she would have already alerted us to the call of our rivers from the depths of ecological despair. The world having just commemorated Earth Day last April 22, let it not be said that we are being deaf to the silent running of our threatened rivers.

ANIMAL PROTECTION
By Atty Chic Baluma

A month ago, it was a sad sight to hear the news of the death of Australian Steve Erwin, the famed host of “ Crocodile Hunter” who died on September 4, 2006 from a deadly stingray’s barb which pierced his chest while filming a TV show on the Great Barrier Reef. Steve Erwin was a popular international figure who prior to that tragic day had numerous near death experiences exploring what he loved most, the world of wildlife and animals in general.

While animals play a great role in the maintenance of balance in our ecology, many heartless individuals are not giving animals their fair slice of rights in this world. A week ago, Checkpoints chanced upon watching a news where a hundred kilos of dog meat were confiscated in Baguio. In that episode, the lifeless remains of the dogs were stockpiled one over the other. It was a disheartening scene to watch, with me wondering what has happened to the old saying that goes “A dog is a man’s best friend”. A live animal was also seen being fed to the crocodile which appeared very eager to quench its hunger. Interestingly, that episode caught the eyes of the animal rights activists who are now fighting for the cessation of such practice.

The Book of Genesis tells us that on the sixth day the great sea monsters and all kinds of winged birds were made. All kinds of livings creatures, cattle, creeping things, and wild animals of all kinds were likewise created. The bible likewise tells us that God has given man every seed bearing plant all over the earth and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be his food. The bible tells further that God has given to all animals of the land, all the birds of the air, and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground, the green plants for food. Nowhere in the bible is there a line which gives man the unlimited license to exploit unnecessarily and abuse God’s creation.

According to George Eliot, “Animals are such agreeable friends, they ask no questions and pass no criticisms”. Animals just like human beings have also their rights. Every animal in this planet deserves to be treated with respect and be free from any form of exploitation. While some animal activists bats for total animal liberation, many animal welfare groups take a different kind of approach, working for the improvement of the relationship between animals and man.

While our country is never behind in the passage of laws advocating the protection of certain wildlife species or animals, to name a few, we have the laws concerning the protection of marine turtles, protection of dolphins, protection of whale sharks and manta rays, sea cow (dugong), the battle for their preservation remains an uphill climb.

The use of animals to mankind cannot be quantified. Scientific researchers use animals in biomedical research aimed in improving human health. Potent Antibiotics and vaccines and other medical treatments were developed with the aid of animal experimentation. Even in the treatment of the most dreaded diseases of the modern world, cancer and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), animals remain a crucial tool for its investigation and treatment. The use of animals in experimentation face protests, since some animal rights activists are objecting to toxicity testing performed on animals to help determine whether cosmetics or medicines are safe for human use. Laws must be provided which will regulate the use and treatment of laboratory animals in scientific industries and in education.

Animals to a large amount provides mankind food. But for animal right advocates, the use of intensive farming is opposed because of the unrestricted space that such farm animals are forced to occupy before they are slaughtered.

Animal injury and even its death befall to animals when mankind exposes them in entertainment / sports. Take the case of such sports where animals are made the key players, like dog fighting and bullfighting. Although bullfighting has been banned in certain countries, such remains to be a traditional event in Spain.

Animals, just like human beings who deserve to be protected from the day of their birth until their death, should get the protection that they deserve. With all the above-things taken into consideration, it is not too late to show genuine concern for animals, especially animals that are on the verge of near extinction. God never destined animals to be placed at the mercy of men.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

WHY THE PANGLAO AIRPORT SHOULD NOT BE BUILT
By Atty. Gee Biliran
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

We said our piece about a year ago when we wrote why the Panglao International Airport should not be built. I also read that a Panglao official himself quoted some studies showing that Panglao is not an environmentally and commercially feasible airport site because Panglao is sitting on caves.

But, until now, our pleas have fallen on deaf ears and the plan is as feverish as ever.

Hoping to give some sense to our public officials who cannot see beyond consumerism and infrastructure, I am sharing with you a letter written by Fil-Am cousin James, son of Dodong and Susan Dompor. He is in second year pre-med at University of California-Irvine in California, USA. He loves Bohol and is worried that an international airport in Panglao will bring more harm than good to the place.

The letter was attached to the email sent by James’ aunt, Dayel:

“To those whose hearts lie in Bohol,

Imagine an area overrun by chaos: rampant crime, widespread corruption and unbearable air, water, and noise pollution. Thousands suffer a life of poverty, living their lives in uninhabitable slums. The “successful” citizens hold exorbitant amounts of money. Although they live the high life, their lack of focus places them on the fast track towards disaster â€" working hard for material luxuries but going nowhere fast. Throughout the day, the people of this city daydream of a better place.

Now, envision a different scene: pristine land filled with lush vegetation, crisp air, tropical beaches and fresh water. Crime and corruption are virtually non-existent because a culture of kindness, social/environmental responsibility, simplicity, and spirituality fills the hearts of the few people lucky enough to inhabit the region. These people live in peace with themselves and their environment, carrying out their lives one day at a time.

Here in America, the “land of the free,” workers slave away at their jobs forty hours a week, fifty weeks a year dreaming of a chance to catch a glimpse of paradise.

On the other hand, I was lucky enough to find such a place. I found paradise in an island called Bohol.

Last summer, I traveled to the Philippines for a vacation. Manila stood as a high-tech mecca with many attractions â€" malls the size of a behemoth, movie houses mightier than any in the United States, and all the conveniences of a modern lifestyle. Although a modern allure shines in Manila, injustice and pollution tarnish its streets. High-class skyscrapers and malls juxtapose the suffering and poverty of the slums. Heaviness floats through the polluted air as square cars spit diesel fumes. Contaminated brown water flows through Manila’s rivers and emits a stench of social decay.

The pollution of this city overwhelmed me to such an extent that I collapsed and was rushed to the hospital due to poor air quality and a respiratory viral infection.

After Manila, I left on a plane for a different place: Bohol, the land of my father. The moment I arrived there, I felt the difference. Clean air filled my lungs, fresh food brought a satisfaction to my stomach that I never experienced, and the scenery gave serenity to my eyes. Most importantly, the openness, spirituality, simplicity, and generosity of the people generated peace in my soul. Not once in Bohol did I feel sick or sluggish. From the river of Loboc to the many Chocolate Hills, the land of Bohol served as an example of paradise on earth: people living simple lives in harmony with their surroundings.

If an additional airport is constructed in Bohol (specifically in Panglao, Bohol), I promise that money, technology, and luxuries will flow into the island faster than a waterfall, but something far greater will be lost â€" the sense of what it means to be a Boholano.

The airport would serve as a gateway to increased commercial endeavors. However, the noise and fuel pollution brought about by airplanes, tourists, and selfish businessmen would consume the land and corrupt the culture of this wonderful island. The unspoiled landscape would be rotten by the woes of society. Consumerism and commercialism would replace simplicity, and above all, peace and serenity would vanish from this island. A new airport, especially an international airport in Panglao, would destroy the fabric of Boholano society.

I ask every Boholano to defend this land with all of your body, all of your mind, and all of your soul from widespread and uncontrolled growth so that your way of life would not be sacrificed. Controlled tourism and limited growth/development are the keys to saving the uniqueness and serenity of a green island paradise called Bohol.


Sincerely,


James Anthony Punzalan Dompor

P.S. If you want an example of successful controlled growth, research Hawaii, especially “Big Island” Hawaii.”

(Happy birthday to my hubby, Boy.)

Which side of the “truth” is buttered?
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

A good friend in the media is notoriously known in his standing rule of asking first “which side of the bread is buttered” before commenting or printing a news.

Meaning, his kind of journalism is always dictated on what gains his brand of reporting brings to him (mostly computed in monetary terms). The news that would saw print in his newspaper or things he says on radio are always weighed in terms of which side of the story would bring him “return of investment.”

Well, he says that is how smart guys like him do things and he considers himself the best in that field.

That is his own interpretation of the media profession â€" a potent tool that welds power to coerce and intimidate in pursuit to what he terms as the “buttered side” of the bread.

Sad to say, many in the profession are in the same boat, enslaved by the lust to gain; going up to the extent of even prostituting a medium that should only be entrusted to those who have the calling.

They failed to comprehend the magnitude of what the Lord had warned: “Man does not live by bread alone...”

But leaves go brown and just like anything under the sun, each day brings us closer, back to where we come from â€" dusts in the wind.

This media man is no exception. He would certainly grow old and would return back to the mainstream society as a “has-been”, minus his menacing tag as a hard-hitting (eating) media man.

That would be the time of unwanted reckoning.
Can he look straight in the eyes of those he abused?
Words like “gaba”, would then become a reality that can’t be denied.
It can no longer be hidden, even with a bluff or a put-on crispy laughter.

*****
Remember the Story of Faust

Even Martin Luther believed Faust was possessed of diabolic powers. The first published narrative of Faust’s life was in Johann Spiess's “Historia von D. Johann Fausten” (also known as the “Spiess'sches Faustbuch”, 1587) in Frankfurt.

In Spiess's version, Faust buys knowledge, power and political clout from the devil for a period of 24 years, at the price of his immortal soul.

But at the end of the contract, he threatened the Devil and questioned the MOA.

He bragged he had a battery of prominent lawyers and has the Big Four as financial backers; but the Devil simply laughed him off.

“You bit more than you could chew (greedy). And now the end is near and you must face the final curtain,” the Devil said to Faust.

A German dramatist and critic, Gotthold Lessing (1598) explored the possibility of making a story redeeming Faust.

The version of his life story said of Faust becoming a desperate penitent, but too late in his repentance to save himself from damnation.

In the story, it could not be determined if Faust was able to escape his fate. But what is certain is: “the Devil is always smarter”.

Lesson for Today: Remember: “What comes up must come down.”

Nursing & Boxing: The Collapse
By Atty. Aleck Francis Lim
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Though nursing is not our family’s cup of tea and boxing is the least of our ambition, there are two nagging issues that keep coming back in mind and we feel that by unloading this disappointment and disgust, we can somehow dispel the cloud of darkness that hovers over these two favorite interests of our nation.

First, there is this nursing scandal, which is becoming uglier day by day. Second, there was this fall of a boxing hero by the name of Czar Amonsot. But first, let’s dissect the nursing wreckage.

It is a common knowledge that the only reason our economy is still alive and kicking is because of the courtesy of remittances sent by Filipinos abroad, about 8 million of them sending more than 8 billion dollars a year.

The nurses are the fountainhead of dollars and pounds â€" that’s a fact. There is no wonder that some doctors cannot resist the fact that what they earn in a month can be earned by nurses abroad in a day. So our doctors jump to the bandwagon and take up nursing degrees in schools nationwide, abandoning ego and original career goals.

What one nurse can earn in the U.S. or in UK cannot be earned by 20 or 30 domestic helpers in Singapore or Hong Kong. Even if we combine the earnings of seamen, engineers, service workers in the Middle East and in many parts of the planet, they cannot beat the amount of earnings Filipino nurses amass in hospitals around the world.

Aside from the fact that Filipino nurses are preferred by foreign employers because of their genuine ability to speak English, Filipino nurses are considered by their hosts as more hardworking and compassionate compared to Hispanics, Indians, or other Asian nationals of the same profession.

What now? The reputation of our nurses is in disarray.

We used to believe that we only have dishonest political officials who suck handsome amount of money from imaginary public works, but now we come to realize that the malady of dishonesty seems to be a nationwide cancer.

The very people whom we trust to take care of our bodies when we are sick cannot be absolutely trusted at all. Of course, it is not true that all nursing students cheated in the recent board examination. But it is true, as confessed by a Davao nursing board reviewer, that the exam leakage was a countrywide spill.

And it is so logical to believe that. With the millions of text messages flooding in our country everyday, the probability that indeed many were able to sniff in advance the contents of the nursing board is so high.

The terrible consequence of this scandal is unquantifiable. We can never calculate the monetary and opportunity losses the nation will suffer if and when foreign hospitals would start blacklisting Filipino nurses. The moment this grim scenario happens, farewell to nursing schools and farewell to foreign currency remittances that pump blood to our sickly economy.

I don’t know if the responsible people who sold the entire nursing profession were aware of the implication and consequences of their action.

They must be punished to the full extent of the law for they murder the future of many honest nursing students and harm the future of our country.

If the same cheating can happen in other fields, and we hope it won’t, we’d be covered with corrosive shame in the eyes of the international community.

Meanwhile, Mr. Amonsot did not cheat in the boxing arena. But he committed a mistake in his life that is so devastating to his supposed shining future.

Homer Sayson of Sun-Star Cebu wrote a column on September 27, 2006 entitled “The Sad Fall of Czar’s Empire.” This is a recommended reading for those who share with him the anger and disgust he felt on Mr. Amonsot’s debacle at the ICM recently.

Sayson wrote: “Amonsot tipped the scales at 135 pounds, five more than the 130-pound limit. And so instead of looking like a Greek (g)od, Czar looked like a Greek restaurant.”

“As an ALA boxer, Czar had a US visa, a permit to work in the land of milk and honey. He also had the golden chance to train at the Wild Card gym under Freddie Roach, and someday, Czar could get a shot at a really, really rich payday. How can I not hate him for throwing all that away?” Sayson raged in his column.

And the most scathing comment was when he wrote: “Indeed, to be 21 means life is pregnant with promise, untouched by the world’s cruelties. But to be 21 also means to be reckless and irresponsible.”

We don’t know how true was the report that one of our boxing hero by the name of Czar Amonsot, a contemporary of rising star Boom-boom Bautista, had the temerity to drink and smoke inside the ALA stable quarters.

We don’t want to believe this, but if this is true, we can only shake our heads in disgust with the same intensity of disgust we feel towards those who massacre the once noble nursing profession.

An election issue
By Atty. Alexander "Aleckoy" Lim

This early, the battle lines are drawn between Mayor Leon Calipusan and Vice Mayor Artemio Delfin. These battle lines are expected to be there until election day when the people of Loboc will decide who is right.

It is not difficult to understand the underlying but evident rift between the two. Calipusan had challenged former Mayor Cecilio Sarigumba, Delfin’s standard-bearer, and lost to Sarigumba’s well-oiled machinery.

Like any bride’s maid waiting for her time to come, Delfin looked forward to the day when Sarigumba will complete his three terms so that he will have his turn to bid for the town’s top post.

Unfortunately for Delfin, Calipusan was able to work an agreement behind the scenes that left the vice-mayor holding on to the empty bag. When the 2004 elections came, Calipusan became a consensus mayor among Loboc’s power brokers.

Loboc became one of a few towns in Bohol where the mayoralty candidate was unopposed, giving Calipusan the seat that he failed to bag the previous election on a silver platter.

Of course, that did not sit well for Delfin who is still nursing hopes to realize his dream to take his turn as town mayor. He was willing to step aside for one term but obviously he cannot wait forever.

This election, Delfin has to choose whether he will again give in or make his bold move. All indications point to the latter. It seems that, like many vice mayors in the province, the long wait is over for him. To Delfin, there is no tomorrow.

If indeed he will challenge Calipusan in next year’s local elections, Delfin has one issue that he can raise against the incumbent â€" the fees that the town is collecting from river cruise boat owners.

The increase in the charges has become a source of conflict between Calipusan and the boat owners who complain against the increase. The mayor however stands pat on the charges because he believes it is only proper that the town benefit from the tourism activity that has enriched many boat owners but leaves only loose change for the town.

If Calipusan has any consolation at this point, it is the fact that the issue is over a project that is intended to benefit the town. It is unlike issues hounding other incumbents such as enriching one’s self while in office and other excesses.

At the very least, the election will also determine whether the town actually benefits from the project as Calipusan wants it to appear. If he is able to convince the rest of the voters that the project is good for the town, he will be vindicated with their votes.

No doubt about it, this project will be submitted as an issue to the town.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Manhunt continues for robbery-rape suspects

Two of the three suspects in the robbery with rape case reported in barangay Mahayag, San Miguel are now the object of a police manhunt.

The three suspects took cash amounting P1,000, groceries and also a motorcycle owned by the victim used as their get-away vehicle.

Initial police investigation revealed that the 15-year old daughter of the businessman was raped. A follow-up operation caught one of the suspects who was identified as the one who raped the businessman’s daughter.

Witnesses said that the three suspects were earlier seen drinking in the businessman’s store.

The hot pursuit had gone up to Dagohoy where the two remaining suspects were believed hiding.

Police are also checking Ubay and Buenavista as the suspects were reported as residents of those towns.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

3 charged for illegal fishing on Bohol seas

A Bacolod-based commercial fishing boat using the method known as por seine

was apprehended by a composite team of Coastal Law Enforcement Council (CLEC 1) fish wardens, members of the PNP-7 Regional Mobile Group, the Maritime Command, Coast Guard and the local police.

Three of its crew were charged with violation of Sec. 90, RA 8550 (National Fishery Code) filed at he Provincial Prosecution Office.

The boat officers were identified as Captain Eduardo Tuburan, Willie De Asis, all of Bacolod City and Master Fisherman Jubert Conde of Masbate.

The presence of the vessel was reported by Calape Mayor Ernest Herrera who is also the incumbent chairman of CLEC 1.

The boat F/V CARMELINA 16 was spotted off Bagong Banwa Island, Tubigon, and found fishing within the prohibited 15-kilometer radius municipal waters.

The 120 â€"gross ton fishing boat had a load of 5 containers (banyera) when apprehended by authorities.

The three boat officials are now detained at the PNP lock-up jail in Tubigon town.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

By Loy Palapos
EVA GULLE-DE LOS SANTOS
REACHING THE STARS THROUGH HER MUSIC

Music throbs triumphant in her family. Her father, Leoncio, “Along” Caseñas Gulle, Sr., is a composer, an arranger, and an instrumentalist, at his best with the saxophone. Awarded one of the Most Outstanding Jagnaanons, he composed the Jagna Hymn, and is a total entertainer when he performs with his children. He was a Head Teacher, who later worked with the Bureau of Customs in Negros Occidental and Cebu, and then back as an instructor at BIT. Her mother, Elisa Cagulada-Gulle, shares her passion for culture and the arts, especially music, and she retired as a mentor at the Jagna Central Elementary School.

Her sister, Louella “Baby” Gulle-Bantol, is a Medical Technologist by profession (SWU), and is a singer and dancer in her own right. She owns and manages V and L Rock Aggregates and Konstruction Services (V and L Raks), and is married to Engr. Victor J. Bantol (also a gifted singer and guitarist), the President and Resident Manager of Bohol Limestone Corporation.

Eva’s other sister, Gilda “Inday” Gulle-Richdale, a BSC-Management graduate (gifted with terpsichorean and vocal excellence), now resides in Vancouver, Canada as Executive Assistant to the Vice President of BC Tel (British Columbia Telecommunications Company), with her husband, Douglas Richdale, Vice President of Gulfshores Resources, Inc. Their only brother is the youngest, Leoncio “Junjun” Gulle, Jr., now managing V and L Raks in Jagna, and is married to Marishel Jamora, both lead singers of the Infinite Band.

Eva is married to Ruben David de los Santos, an American of Spanish-Filipino descent. They own and manage LOKAL, a T-Shirt company based in Cebu. Their four children are all advocates of music and the performing arts: Carlos, Kristina Monique, OJ (Orencio James Virgil), and Patricia Ana.

Monique, at 18, has the artistic talents of her mother. She used to study at the Cebu International School. She performs every Saturday in Café Lupe (Tagaytay) and every Thursday in Parañaque. Chosen one of the Palmolive Girls, she also won the National Search for VJ of Studio 23. She sang the Nescafe jingle in one of its commercials on TV and radio. She’s Monique Rae when she is singing. Her first album is now in the making, with most of the songs composed by her Mom, Bohol’s Diva, Eva Santos.

She first saw the light of day in Tejero, Jagna on October 1, 1962. She was on top ten of her class at the Jagna Elementary School, and earned an Award of Recognition by the GSP (Girl Scouts of the Philippines) for being the representative to the Bohol GSP Council. At an early age her inclination to music was already evident, especially when she won in Paligsahan sa Musika. She graduated Salutatorian at the Colegio de la Medalla Milagrosa, where she romped away with several awards, including: Bohol Prisaa Meet Declamation Contest, Best in Extra-Curricular Activities, Gerry Roxas Leadership Award, Grand Prize: GSP National Singing Competition, GSP National Jamboree Talent Award, CAT Dream Girl and Cadette of the Year.

A scholarship grant for her singing ability was given by the Cebu State College, where she took Bachelor of Science in Education, and graduated Cum Laude. From the first to the fourth year she received Awards of Recognition for Academic Achievement. She was the Grand Prize Winner of the Cebu Inter-School Singing Competition and won in the CSC Declamation Contest. She was also the Best Student Teacher in her batch.

Right after graduation she was taken in by the Sacred Heart School for Boys as a grade school teacher, and later at the Cebu International School. But singing has always been her passion. As Lead Singer of Zee Band, she performed at the Magellan International Hotel, Cebu Plaza Hotel, Cities Music Lounge, and Balls Theater Lounge. She went to Manila and performed regularly at the Tavern on the Square, Makati Skyline, Manila Intercontinental Hotel, and the Manila Hotel Grand Ballroom where she had a special show.

She toured all over the country and earned ovations in Davao, Cagayan de Oro, Iligan, Ozamis, and simultaneously back to Cebu from time to time. In Bohol her singing talent has been acknowledged at the DWC, Kilum-Kilum (with Cue-She as front act), Bohol Tropics, and the Metro Centre Hotel in “Eva with the VIP Waiters.”

Eva was soaring high in popularity when she sang with Manilyn Reynes at the Cebu Coliseum, and with Jun Polestico at the White Gold House and Balls Theatre Lounge. She did another successful stint with Manilyn Reynes at the Araneta Coliseum. TV guestings followed: debut of Dear Manilyn, Ryan Ryan Musikahan, Vilma, The Sharon Cuneta Show, MAD, GMA Supershow, Lunch Date, Eat Bulaga, A Little Night of Music, RSVP, Bro. Marcial, and That’s Entertainment. She went to Singapore and performed at Peppermint Park and Atlantis where she was accorded standing ovations.

Not long after, she did a TV Commercial. The launching of Fanta Soft Drink (by Coca Cola) in Cebu. She also had a TV Special beamed nationwide: GMA 7 Tuesday Special Specials â€" The Midnight Song Festival. She figured out prominently in some corporate shows in 2001: Ng Khai â€" (Ayala Center) Microsoft XP Launching (Ratsky), Globelines (Ayala Sportscenter), Grand Opening of Ayala Entertainment Center, and KBP (Shangri-La Mactan Resort Ballroom).

On March 13, 1998 she was presented the Perlas Award as “Valuable Filipino in the Field of Singing.” She represented the Philippines to the Midnight Sun Song Festival in Lahti, Finland on June 6, 1992, where she won second runner-up when she sang her own composition of “Just Like You and Me.” She holds the distinction of being the only composer in the Philippines to sing her own composition in an international song festival.

In January 1998 she portrayed the role of Lili in the broadway musical classic, The Carnival, accompanied by the Cebu Youth Symphony Orchestra held at the Cebu Plaza Hotel, directed by Dr. Vernon Wenberg of the Minnesotta Actors Guild. In June 2000 she recorded her first album in Manila, mostly her own compositions. In July 2001 she finished recording an album using the Pro Tools software and mastered by Barry Corliss @ Masterworks in Seattle, Washington. Special guests on the Album were Jay Cayuca, Kyle Gianan of the Rap Skallion and The Company. In December 2001, her song “Love is the Answer,” reached number one on both the Asia and Philippine charts on MP3.com, and also reached number 58 in the world.

In 2004 she was chosen Top 7 Women of Cebu, representing the Field of Performing Arts. Last September 2006, she was awarded one of the Most Outstanding Jagna-anons during Jagna’s 375th foundation anniversary. As a Diva she has proven her worth beyond expectations. This chanteuse of exquisite standards has warmed millions of hearts, and her spiels between renditions are perfect illustrations of wit and humor. Eva Santos has already carved a niche in the music firmament, and will continue to be a beloved songbird, especially among Boholanos who takes pride in saying that Eva is their own.

One of the good things that came out of the series of destructive typhoons that hit the country is the realization that power rates can actually be manipulated and taken advantage of by unscrupulous interest groups.

Giving in to the shouts of consumers who cried foul over the inexplicable rise in power rate charges, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo immediately ordered an investigation to go after power utilities involved in the price gouging.

Of course, it would be premature to celebrate simply because the President has ordered an investigation. There have been numerous instances when investigations were ordered in the thick of the uproar, only to lose steam when public interest lost steam.

It matters little that she uttered fighting words to express her outrage over the opportunism that prompted the sudden increase. We have heard enough fighting words that turned up hollow for them to make us sit up.

Indeed, this country has lost its moorings enough for people in power to throw conscience and compassion out of the window. To opportunists like those in the power sector, it does not matter anymore that among the hardest hit by the sudden increase in power charges are the poorest who had just been badly shaken.

It matters little that many of them have lost valuable livelihood investments such as their farms and farm implements, their homes and even their lost loved ones. They do not know how to get back on their feet, if ever they can still do it.

What matters to these vultures is that they make money while the opportunity presents itself. Indeed, let the cash registers ring while no one is looking. Forget about compassion. More profit is music to their ears.

Investigations may intimidate lesser mortals, but not those who have grown wiser to the ways of this administration. If you know which buttons to push, you will find your way out. There may be a slap on the wrist, but that is all there is to it.

What makes this whole episode disgusting however is that unknown to many people, Boholanos have actually been paying higher cost of electricity compared to their neighbors in the region. And yet, nobody seems to give a hoot about it.

Not our politicians, who are supposed to be right at home in the corridors of power. And not their critics who have been shouting against them even for the slightest hint of impropriety.

The sad thing about this is that, if by some miracle, the investigations yield something positive, Boholanos cannot be sure they will get something out of it. Does anybody still care out there for us?

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Board Member Tirol pushes creation of “youth center home”

TWO months after the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act (JJWA) takes effect, Bohol and its 47 towns still do not have a youth detention and rehabilitation center as mandated by the new law.

The center is a half-way house for the youthful offenders now exempted from criminal liability and banned from joining adult rehabilitation centers.

Absent that, where do young victims go when authorities accost them in commission of a crime and turns them over to the Department of Social Welfare and Development who also send children who get in conflict with the law to youth homes while with diversion activities?

Sangguniang Panlalawigan Chairman for Committee on Women and Children Godofreda Tirol said she would ask Bohol officials to work for the immediate establishment of the youth home instead of pursuing with the planned Ubay extension of the Bohol Crisis and Intervention Center (BCIC).

“Actually, the BCIC wanted to expand as they plan to implement the Ubay extension center. But with the urgent need for a center or home for the CICL, I would want to use the P1.5M funds for the extension to build the much needed youth home,” the province’s top child advocate legislator said.

Right now, Bohol CICL numbering 164 of them have congested a DSWD managed rehabilitation center in Argao, making it virtually impossible for parents to get a corollary counseling to facilitate the child’s rejoining the society.

A documentary, which BM Trol shared to radio listeners bare that the painful reality that young criminals have pointed to their parents lack of attention and care as the culprits behind their transgressions.

Victims as they are to be seen now, these people deserve to be treated fairly to be productive when the could rejoin society, she pressed meaning the children offenders.

The immediate adoption of the Juvenile Justice Welfare Act (JJWA) or Republic Act 9344 puts over the Local Government Unit’s shoulders the responsibility to take into their care the children-in-conflict with the law (CICL), through an integrated program of intervention, mediation and diversion while adopted in Youth Homes.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

The provincial government had savings, the chairman of the Bids and Awards Committee said in disclaiming what was reported in this paper that the total cost of the controversial air-con project for the Bohol Cultural Center “overshot” the original agency estimate.

Atty. Handel Lagunay, the provincial legal officer and concurrently BAC chairman, bared to the public Friday over Capitol’s regular radio program Governor’s Report, that the expenditure for the project only cost P3,401,006 rendering a savings of P346,994 from its original budget of P3,748,000.

It could not be verified where Lagunay got the figures since records from the General Services Office revealed that as of last week collection of vouchers, the actual expenditure of the project had reached P3,757,669 higher by P9,669 from the original estimated amount.

The figures obtained by the Bohol Standard were jointly reviewed by GSO acting head Engr. Rosalinda Yu and technical assistant Engr. Eustaquio Caliao.

This does not include incidental expenditures like honoraria, plane tickets, hotel and accommodation for BAC members who personally went to Manila getting quotations of pre-selected bidders adopting a direct canvass or limited source bidding.

The new revelations also exposed an advance payment of P1.3-million made by the provincial government to the Salcon firm Bohol Light Company Inc. for purchase of heavy load transformers and new service drop lines.

Lagunay said the P1.3-million will eventually be reverted to the government by deductions in the monthly bills of the electric consumption of the cultural center.

Knee-jerk explanation
Lawyer Lagunay said that the decision of BAC to cancel the mandated open competitive public bidding was not a “knee-jerk” reaction.

It was prompted by reports that there was collusion in the proposed air-con project and that it was already a done deal in favor of a local supplier.

The BAC chairman added that one interested local supplier disclosed that he was discouraged by a GSO official not to participate anymore for it (the project) has already been given to another supplier.

Former GSO chief Engr. Edwin Vallejos categorically denied the allegation in an interview with Kagawad Batchoy Alba and Chito Visarra on DyRD’s top-rated morning program PULSO.

“That could not be possible since the invitation to bid was published and posted in Capitol bulletin boards. Besides, it is not GSO that facilitates the bidding, it is the BAC Secretariat,” Vallejos clarified.

Investigation
Admitting it was unfortunate that he was not able to complete the investigation on the alleged collusion after it was overtaken by other issues, Lagunay announced that he has yielded to the suggestion of PULSO for an independent team to finally conclude the probe.

“Aron malikayan ang pagduda ug para sad dili bias, I will no longer handle the investigation. Resident Ombudsman Atty. Thaddeus Jose Acero and the Internal Audit Service headed by Jerome Maniwang will jointly do the job,” he said.

“I will turn over all documents regarding the controversy after the Governor issues the appropriate memorandum,” Lagunay publicly gave the assurance.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Local Gov’t Code role in Charter drive cited by ULAP
By ELENA L. ABEN

[The following is a reprint from the Tuesday, October 10, 2006 issue of the Manila Bulletin.]

The unprecedented access by Filipino voters to information on Charter reform and the rapid gathering of voters’ signatures in support of People’s Initiative were possible because of mechanisms for people empowerment created under the landmark Local Government Code, Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado, president of the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP), said yesterday on the occasion of the 16th anniversary of the Local Government code which was enacted Oct. 19, 1991.

“This Code has kept ordinary Filipinos in the mainstream of local politics and decision-making and proved that people power, far from being an empty principle, is already being commonly employed by Filipinos in political, social, economic, and related decisions from provincial down to the barangay levels,” he said.

The Code’s people empowerment provisions enabled local officials and allied citizens groups to gather almost nine million signatures in support of People’s Initiative to amend the Constitution, Aumentado said.

“We believe in people power because we’ve been employing it to change the lives of Filipinos in our provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays. We’d like to use people’s power as well on a grand scale â€" the way it has been envisioned â€" in order to change the country’s system of government to improve governance,” he added.

Aumentado said key provisions in the Code, enacted 15 years ago on Oct. 10, promote closer ties between local government units and civil society.

The Code mandates public officials, from governors to barangay councilmen or kagawads, to consult local constituencies and encourage them to take part in making decisions on vital issues in their respective communities.

“People empowerment through involvement and active participation in government as provided for in the 1991 Code has made it easier for ULAP to initiate information campaigns on Charter reform, specifically the shift to unicameral parliamentary government,” Aumentado said.

He cited provisions of the Code that make non-government organizations partners in the pursuit of local autonomy; guarantee the participation of the people in local councils and boards; allow the recall of local officials; and mandate the conduct of consultations, public hearings, initiatives, and referendums on urgent local concerns.

Under the people’s initiative for Charter change, Aumentado said, almost nine million Filipino voters endorse the petition, of which 6.3 million were verified by local election registrars.

The signatures became the basis for the ULAP and Sigaw ng Bayan to seek with the Commission on Elections the setting of the date of a national referendum on the proposed Charter amendment.

After Holy Week, ULAP and Sigaw ng Bayan launched a 100-day “ULAP sa TOP” series of consultative meetings on constitutional reform in all 79 provinces of the country.

This, Aumentado said, greatly helped crystallize popular support for the proposed parliamentary shift.

Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone, spokesman of the League of Provinces of the Philippines (LPP), said the holding of barangay assemblies, which the Code mandates, and the creation of local government leagues have expanded people’s role in local government administration and helped “promote united and concerted action for the attainment of countrywide development goals.”

Aumentado who heads both ULAP and LPP, and Sigaw ng Bayan spokesman Raul Lambino filed the petition for people’s initiative with the Comelec on Aug. 25 and the petition for certiorari and mandamus with the Supreme Court on Sept. 4, both on behalf of the 6.3 million verified petitioners after the poll body rejected their joint petition.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

DTI offers heavy equipment operators’ training-seminar

Wondering where those heavy equipment operators learn how to operate those chugging machines that are indispensable in major construction sites?

NOW, as the prospects of heavy equipment operations rev recently with construction and infrastructure blueprint laid down by the national government’s prioritized infrastructure development in the super regions, the poser again ambles out.

This has also pushed the Department of Trade and Industry to announce for those interested workers eager to gain the skills, to a rare Seminar on Heavy Equipment Operation in Punta Princesa Cebu.

Set for October 16-20, the seminar would be conducted by the Construction Training Center of the Don Bosco Technology Center, in Punta Princesa.

Aside from giving the worker trainees the right skills to run the equipment, the course is also designed to provide the trainees the knowledge and skills in common safety applied on the job site.

It also provides the proper work attitude in construction sites as well as the technique in operating the heavy equipment productively by maximizing its use.

The course offers to the worker trainee the technical capability to understand the basic and mechanical operations of the handled equipment so as to efficiently proceed to trouble shoot the equipment, organizers said.

It was not however clear if the seminar also includes a certification of experience for participants that would obviously be considered by contractors for the operator applicants.

At the end of the course, worker trainees should be able to perform the rudimentary skills in conducting daily check and maintenance of equipment; ensure daily productive operations and plan his course of bulldozer operations with the least time and resources wasted.

As for the fees, DTI said the participation is pegged at P4T per head to cover cost of materials and consumables.

An additional P1T would also be charged for the use of the basic training equipment. For more information and reservation, call Ms. Grace Durano at (032) 412-1933 of DTI-7.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Appeals court orders passers’ oath taking

By: Rey E. Requejo, Fel V. Maragay, Macon Ramos Araneta
THE Court of Appeals the other day ordered a “selective retaking” of the test by the 1,687 examinees whose names were added to the list of passers after rejecting a formula for re-computing the results of the tainted June nursing licensure test.

THE COURT also ordered the Professional Regulation Commission to allow the passers to take their oath, but it said their license would be revoked once it was proved that they benefited from the test questions leaked before the exam.

Some 41,000 nursing graduates took the licensure test in June and 17,000 passed it. But the results have been held in doubt because test questions had been leaked to some examinees before the test.

The court said the new exam would cover only medical and surgical nursing and neuro-psychiatry, the areas where test questions had been leaked.

It also ordered the commission “to restore the names of the 1,186 successful examinees and include them in the list of the 41.24 percent who actually passed the June test.

Meanwhile, Malacañang yesterday warned commission chairman Leonor Tripon Rosero to stop defying the administration’s stand favoring a retake of the June test or face sanctions.

Rosero has said she intends to proceed with the oathtaking of the successful nursing examinees once a court order stopping her from doing so lapses.

“I do not know where Chairperson Rosero is coming from, but I think she should abide by the order of the President and the Cabinet for a retake of the exam,” presidential chief-of-staff Michael Defensor said. He made the statement even as a group criticized the National Bureau of Investigation’s report on the cheating.

On Wednesday, the bureau said it was filing charges against 17 people for leaking questions covered by the June licensure test.

But the Health Alliance for Democracy insisted that the bureau also charge the officials of the Professional Regulation Commission for the tainted test.

“What is surprising is that the NBI virtually exonerated [the commission despite suspicions] that the leak may have been going on for years,” group head Gene Alzona Nisperos said.

Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Driving judicial flow to speedy resolution
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Saddled with still many vacant courts resulting in the piling of unresolved cases, jam-packed jails, and the seemingly coming into reality the justice delayed; justice denied taunt, Bohol now sees a light in the end of the dark tunnel with the Justice on Wheels (JOW) program of the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Boasting of a new speed for resolving cases, the Justice on Wheels (JOW) program is now here now under Executive Judge Pablo Magdoza.

The JOW is one of the major initiatives of the Supreme Court under its action program for judicial reforms.

Behind its track record is a record 245 cases heard in two months, released 160 juvenile offenders for suspended sentences, plea of guilt, recognizance, probation and diversion.

No less that Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (SC) Artemio Panganiban, accompanied by associate justice Adolfo Azcuna, the Chairperson of the SC Committee on Justice on Wheels came for the Bohol judicial milestone marking.

The judicial bigwigs delegation was also welcomed by Vice mayor Nuevas Montes, Governor Erico Aumentado and Bohol local officials at the city airport, minutes before the formal launching ceremonies.

Launched in 2004, the project seeks to improve the poor and the marginalized sector’s access to justice, encourages the fast disposition of cases through the innovative dispute resolution and provides affordable judicial services through the mobile court’s operation.

With Bohol, the JOW comes in the form of mobile court in a reconfigured bus doubling as a courtroom, mediation room with an assisting judge complement, clerk of court, stenographer, clerk, a process server, a mediator, public prosecutor, a driver and a security guard.

With presiding judge’s covering unoccupied courts as added burdens in their rounds, and with the courts being located far apart, the problem has become compounded piling endless delays.

Set amidst the problem, the mobile court may be sent to these areas with unoccupied courts, to address specific concerns such as case congestion and delay until permanent solutions are established, the DOJ brochure said. Literally improving the physical access to courts, the JOW travels to court stations and detention cells or jails to hear cases.

It may even go to circuitized courts and towns where court seats may be accessible by the JOW, a DOJ produced JOW brochure states.

Anti-poverty drive seeks Guinness World Record
By: BRUCE EGT ZABALA
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

An exciting and innovative global challenge of the Millennium Campaign will attempt to set an official Guinness World Record for the most number of people ever to Stand Up Against Poverty on October 15-16, 2006.

THE Stand Up mobilization initiative is designed to coincide with the global celebration of the International Day of Poverty Eradication and the White Band Day of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty.

It aims to raise awareness of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and publicly demonstrate the growing global support for the achievement of the Goals.

In the Philippines, the goal is to have at least 1 million Filipinos stand up and be counted from 15-16 October 2006. Simultaneous and parallel events will be organized nationwide and enrolled to adopt the common logo, theme, slogan and Stand Up Movement.

Stand Up is the opportunity for organizations to be part of this global event in support of poverty eradication and the achievement of the MDGs.

The occasion would showcase laudable efforts and accomplishments towards the attainment of the MDGs as well as pose the challenge for sustaining and even accelerating the efforts.

Inspired by the idea of this campaign, the United Nations system in the Philippines will use the month of October â€" recognized as “UN Month” â€" as a platform for MDG advocacy. UN-led activities are organized throughout the month.

Underpinning the October events is the theme: “Stand Up Against Poverty. Stand Up for Millennium Development Goals”, which capitalizes on the global Stand Up event of the Millennium Campaign.

The campaign encourages a large number of national and local partners including people’s organizations, national government, local government units, non-government organizations, the private sector, academe and media to participate.

Some of the events are being organized and coordinated by the National Commission for Culture and Arts (NCCA) and UN â€" Habitat MDG Resource Cities.

Bridges connecting the Visayas. Too good to be true?
CLOSER TO REALITY
Published on Oct 15, 2006 by The Bohol Standard Newspaper

By: June Blanco/ Angelica J. Sanchez/LPP Secretariat
With the dream of its own international airport still stuck in the land acquisition stage, Bohol lately wants another mind boggling, multi-billion budgeted bridges that will connect the island to Cebu and then to the rest of the whole Visayas region.

Are all these too good to be true?

Bohol Governor Erico B, Aumentado said these are ambitious projects but they are not impossible.

“Together with the Panglao Bohol International Airport Development Project [PBIADP], the Friendship Bridges linking five Visayas islands are already in the Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan [MTPDP] for 2004 to 2010,” he explained.

The proposed bridges will link Bohol to Cebu and to Southern Leyte, Cebu to Oriental Negros, Negros Occidental to Panay Island and Iloilo to Guimaras.

Gov. Erico B. Aumentado, national president of the League of Provinces of the Philippines, convened all the governors of Western, Central and Eastern Visayas few months ago presenting to them the concept paper for the establishment of at least six bridges that will link all of the islands of the Visayas.

During the meeting hosted by Negros Occidental Gov. Joseph Marañon, the governors of the three regions approved unanimously a resolution endorsing to the national government the concept paper for the Trans-Visayas Friendship Bridges Project.

Step Closer
And last week, Tourism Sec. Joseph Ace Durano endorsed to the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) the bridge projects â€" bringing them still another step closer to realization.

The approval came during the Infrastructure Summit initiated by the PMS at the Dusit Hotel in Makati City. Durano is President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s Cabinet Officer for the Central Philippines Super Region.

The President herself is convinced of the viability of the project that is part of her Strong Republic Nautical Highway to link the entire country as described in her latest SONA and outlined in the MTPDP.

In her foreword, she said in the next six years, “we must do more.”

“Eradicating poverty continues to be our biggest challenge. Thus, the basic task of our Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan for the period 2004-2010 is to fight poverty by building prosperity for the greater number of the Filipino people,” she said.

“Knowing that so much is at stake in such task, I have thus involved myself seriously in the formulation of the MTPDP particularly in the crafting of the basic outline to ensure that the policy strategies and programs therein are more focused. I want the solutions and interventions to our country’s problems to be more strategic,” she vowed.

Her main consideration for the Plan is that it must generate positive impact and must be doable. Through this Plan, she said she is guided in all undertakings needed to strengthen and sustain a strong and responsive republic. The targets have been set, and she expects all agencies of government to make sure these are attained.

10-Point Legacy
“The Plan is the roadmap through which the 10-point legacy of my administration will be achieved. Beyond this Plan, however, is the more difficult task of making sure that it is successfully implemented. I thus call on the support of all sectors of our society to ensure its realization,” she said.

The successful implementation of this Plan can only be realized through a strong partnership as well as more equitable risk-sharing among government, the business sector, and the civil society, she concluded.

The Trans-Visayas Friendship Bridges is topbilled by the Bohol-Mactan, Cebu viaduct which is expected to bring the two provinces â€" both of which figure prominently as the country’s major tourism destinations.

Aside from that connecting Bohol and Cebu, there will also be two bridges between Bohol and Southern Leyte; another between Cebu and Oriental Negros; Negros Occidental and Iloilo; Iloilo and Guimaras.

P128-M Study

Japanese consulting firm, Pacific Consultants Inc., prepared the concept paper for the Trans-Visayas Friendship Bridges, which will virtually interconnect the entire Visayas region, since the islands of Samar and Leyte have already been linked through the San Juanico Bridge.

“PCI has done the concept paper on the bridges project and is conducting the pre-feasibility study pro bono,” LPP president, Gov. Erico B. Aumentado said.

At the same time, the governors approved the proposal of the Province of Negros Occidental to locate the bridge connecting the province to Panay Island in Tomonton Point in E.B Magalona, Negros Island to San Juan Pt., Banate, Iloilo to shorten the length of the viaduct.

In order to see this ambitious project to its fruition, the Visayas governors also agreed to the proposal of Oriental Negros Gov. George Arnaiz for the provinces in the region to put up a collective counterpart equivalent to 50 percent of the cost to undertake a feasibility study for the project.

The other 50 percent will be sourced from the funds of the national government. The DPWH estimated the cost of the feasibility study at P128 million.

Governors Salvacion Z. Perez and Orlando Fua Sr. of Antique and Siquijor, respectively, said they would also be contributing for the counterpart funds because their provinces will still be benefiting from the project in the long term.

Aumentado said the realization of the project would not only hasten the transportation of people, tourists and cargo between the three regions, but will also bring down the cost of production of local goods and the cost of transmitting power and electricity between and among the provinces.

RVAT will have minimal impact on basic goods, say economic managers
By Cathy Apelacio

General Santos City (31 January 2006) -- Malacañang has assured the people that "more investments, jobs and social services" will come their way once the Reformed Value Added Tax (RVAT) will be fully implemented tomorrow, February 1.

The Palace is certain that the impending two percent hike in the RVAT would further boost the nation's fervor to achieve a more improved economy.

A part of the Arroyo's fiscal and economic reforms, the RVAT, Malacanang said is aimed at improving the country's budget and credit standing.

It is also expected to uplift the people's standard of living by providing them with more jobs and social services especially among the poorest of the poor.

The President's Economic Managers have assured the public that the RVAT would have a "very minimal impact" on the prices of basic goods, oil and petroleum products as well as other services.

With the RVAT implementation, Malacanang has ordered the Department of Trade and Industry to relentlessly monitor the prices of commodities. The DTI, on the other hand, vowed that it will "not allow unscrupulous vendors from preying on the public."

Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio R. Bunye, is full of confidence that the two percent VAT, in addition to the existing 10 percent, would be supported by the business community and the ordinary Filipinos, in general.

"We have already proven that we can bite the bullet for the sake of the economy and the whole world is looking upon us to fully implement our fiscal and economic reform," Bunye said.
The Press Secretary also believed that with the full implementation of the RVAT the Philippines will be put in the attention of foreign investors and that it would help boost their confidence on the country's economy.

The implementation of the RVAT, he added will mean "more foreign investments are expected to pour into the country."

Earlier President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo stressed that the increased revenue collections brought about by the implementation of RVAT would redound to more funds for her pro-poor social services program. (PIA-SarGen)

AFP expresses full support to Arroyo government
By Cathy Apelacio

General Santos City (31 January 2006) -- Members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines based in this city vowed their full allegiance to the rule of law amid military adventurism that hounds the Armed Forces command.

The military leadership here said that adventurism among junior officers is an isolated case and that they will never be swayed into joining the renegade soldiers who might have been misled by expecting too much idealism in the government.
They maintained that these junior officers are being used by vicious politicians to rise in arms against the Arroyo government.

Brig. Gen. Alfredo Cayton, commanding chief of the 601st Brigade based in Malungon said the arrest of fugitive Marine Capt. Nicanor Faeldon after 44 days in hiding has displayed once again the unified spirit of the AFP chain of command and its full respect and obedience to the rule of law.
Over the weekend, the 57th IB, 6ID Philippine Army based in Asinan, Buayan, this city received nine Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) breakaway who surrendered as a result of intensified campaign of the military.

The surrenderers yielded 1 rocket propelled grenade, 1 garrand rifle, 1-cal 45 pistol, 1 shot gun, 2-40mm grenade launchers, 1 cal 30 spring field, 1 cal 38 revolver, and various types of ammunition.

57th IB Commanding Officer Col. Flaviano Sembran said the surrenderers have chosen to leave their revolutionary ideology to go back to the fold of law and be with the mainstream society.
Recently President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Datuk Othman Abd. Razak, newly appointed adviser of Malaysian Prime Minister Dato Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, discussed "issues of mutual interest to the Philippines and Malaysia, notably the GRP-MILF peace talks."
The two officials highlighted the need to expedite the government-MILF peace talks, of which Malaysia hosts. Both officials said "the GRP and the MILF were fully committed to the peace process."

The meeting also discussed the possibility of expanding the membership of the International Monitoring Team (IMT), which is presently composed of Malaysia, Libya and Brunei.
The IMT has been accompanying the GRP and the MILF-Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCHs) in several fact-finding missions and has proved to be instrumental in addressing reported ceasefire violations from both sides.

The President and the Malaysian official vowed to pursue their initiatives until peace and development reigns in Mindanao. (PIA SarGen)

PNP chief Lumibao to grace PRO 8 anniversary

Tacloban City (January 31 2006) â€"- The Chief of the Philippine National Police Director General Arturo C. Lomibao will be the guest of honor and speaker during the Police Regional Office 08 15th PNP Day Anniversary on February 07, 2006 at the Camp Kangleon grounds, Palo, Leyte.
Police Chief Superintendent Eliseo Decena dela Paz, Regional director of PRO 08, said that the anniversary celebration will be marked with a simple program in keeping with the government’s austerity program.

The program, General dela Paz said, will include the giving of awards and recognition to deserving police units and personnel for their achievements. He added that awards and recognition will also be given to private individuals for their support to the Philippine National Police during the calendar year 2005.

General dela Paz bared that the PRO 08 has invited, aside from the PRO 08 officers, men and non-uniformed personnel, important government officials, local government executives, Regional Directors of the various line agencies of government and some private individuals.

The good general, who assumed his post on Sept 9, 2005, revealed that the Region is generally peaceful despite the slight five percent increase in the number of index crimes or those crimes committed against persons or properties, in 2005.

Avowed to work for the early resolution of the unsolved crimes in the Region, General dela Paz is now working on what he described as “house cleaning” to professionalize the men in uniform in the Region.

One of the things that he is giving serious attention is the building of police stations because he noted that most of the police stations in the Region are still housed in the municipal buildings. He said that this is one of the focus of PNP Chief Lomibao . In fact there are now some police stations which are under construction.

General dela Paz stressed that he is not only after the solving of the proliferation of illegal activities in the Region but also to win the trust and confidence of the people. If the people trust the men in uniform, they can be the best partners in the maintenance of peace and order in the different localities in the Region, the good General added. (PIA

Seeing with Your Eyes

I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. Job 42:5

In his time, Job was the most righteous person on earth. He was so godly that the Lord took pleasure in pointing him out to Satan (Job 1:. Yet, despite his love for God and his diligent obedience to His commands, even Job had not fully come to know God. The blessings God had given to Job had not revealed everything about God’s character. There were characteristics that Job would come to realize only through adversity. So the Lord allowed Satan to test Job through suffering.

Although Job lost everything he had, even his seven children, Job discovered that God was still with him. Though he faced the most difficult and bewildering tribulations imaginable, Job came to understand that God was infinitely wiser than he (Job 42:1-4). As Job endured the insensitivity of his friends, he learned that God is the only One who is absolutely trustworthy. Job learned much about God through his anguish. Finally, he confessed that at first he had only heard about God, but now, through his suffering, he had come to see God (Job 42:5).

When you are in the midst of your trials, your Lord will reveal His character to you in ways you never knew. You will experience His strong and comforting presence. Like Job, you will learn that your Lord will remain, even when everyone else abandons you. You will see God more clearly as He takes you through the dark times. Then you will experience God in ways you had previously only heard about from others. - Henry and Richard Blackaby

Prepared for Worship

He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi,And purge them as gold and silver, That they may offer to the LORD An offering in righteousness. Malachi 3:3

The quality of our worship is not based on our activities but on our character. Churches can mistakenly assume that the better the music, the more impressive the building, and the more eloquent the preaching, the more worshipful the experience will be. Genuine worship, however, originates from within our hearts. If our relationship with God is not healthy, all these things are nothing more than religious pageantry.

The Levites were the worship leaders of their day. Their task was to offer sacrifices on behalf of the people. God declared that before they could worship Him in righteousness, He would first refine them with His refiner’s fire, purging them of any impurities. Merely being members of the religious profession, having official responsibilities in the temple, and going through the rituals of worship, did not guarantee that their religious activities would be acceptable to holy God.

Today, we tend to look to external things to enhance our worship. The true quality of our worship, however, rests within us. If we have not allowed God to purify us first, our worship will be void of His presence. If we do not have a pure heart, we may give offerings, but they will be unacceptable to God. Attending a religious service will not automatically ensure an encounter with God.

If you are not satisfied with the quality of your worship, don’t be too quick to blame your environment. Look first to your own heart. Allow God to refine your heart until it is pleasing to Him, and you will be free to worship God as He intends.  Henry and Richard Blackaby .

It Is Your Life!

For it is not a futile thing for you, because it is your life, and by this word you shall prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess. Deuteronomy 32:47

It’s puzzling that so many Christians try to live the Christian life without reading their Bible, except for sporadic perusals of God’s Word, seeking a pithy thought for the day. The Word of God is not merely a source of helpful suggestions, preventative warnings, or inspirational thoughts: It is life itself! God gathered the children of Israel at the edge of the Promised Land to review their pilgrimage with Him. They had spent forty years in a desert because their parents had not trusted God’s word. Their parents died without seeing the Promised Land because they had not believed God’s word. Even the revered Moses was soon to leave them because he had not shown proper reverence for God’s word. Many of them knew those who had been put to death as a consequence of their disobedience to God’s word. Over the years God’s word had become the most important thing in the life of the Israelites. God commanded His people to bind His words on their hearts, to teach them diligently to their children, and to regularly discuss them in their homes (Deut. 6:4-9). So essential was His word that it was to hold a prominent place in the daily lives of His people. Our reverence for God’s Word is revealed not only by what we say but also by what we do. Spending more time reading and studying the words of people rather than the Word of God, reveals our hearts’ condition. To blatantly disregard God’s Word is to reject life itself. To obey God’s Word is the surest way to experience all that God has in store for us. Henry and Richard Blackaby

Alert status raised in 3 towns in NegOr
By Rachelle Nessia

Dumaguete City (31 January 2006) -- Police have raised the alert status in three southern towns in Negros Oriental province following intelligence reports indicating that these towns are due for attack by members of the New People's Army (NPA).

According to Provincial Police Director P/Sr. Supt. Omar Buenafe, the three towns are Dauin, Siaton and Zamboanguita.

Although Buenafe refused to disclose specific target locations, he said that beach resorts in the said areas are primary on the watch list by the police and a special task force.
Dauin, Siaton and Zamboanguita towns are host to a number of beach resorts owned by foreigners with Filipina spouses.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has earlier ordered the creation of a special task force to patrol the shorelines of the provinces of Negros Oriental, Siquijor, Panglao, Bohol, Apo Island in Dauin, and Dipolog against possible attack. (PIA)

Dumaguete cracks down on hot motorbikes
By Rachelle Nessia

Dumaguete City (31 January 2006) -- Dumaguete City has been tagged as the 'Motorcycle City' in the country due to the abundance of motorcycles in the city. However, this has also led to the proliferation of illegally operated motorbikes.

This spurred the Provincial Police Office and the Dumaguete City Police Office to join forces and launch a crackdown on hot motorcycles in the city.

The crackdown dubbed as "Operation Kilum-Kilum," resulted to the confiscation of about 100 units of single motorcycles which are now impounded at the City Hall compound.

Most of the impounded vehicles did not have plate numbers, no head and tail lights while the drivers did not have registration and driver's licenses, among others.
Fines range from P100 to P1,000. (PIA)

Hero's welcome awaits boxing star Jimrex Jaca
By Rachelle Nessia

Dumaguete City (31 January 2006) -- Though he is not as widely popular as boxing champ Manny, for residents of Sibulan and Negros Oriental, Jimrex Jaca, too, deserves a rousing hero's welcome.
Jaca, whose real name is Jimuel Divino and born in Bolocboloc, Sibulan town in Negros Oriental, landed a spot in the world boxing limelight when he floored his Mexican opponent Geronimo Hernandez in the first round of his fight.

The Jaca-Hernandez bout was the undercard for the Pacquiao-Marquez fight in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Jaca, 22, is now looking forward to a hero's welcome, which will greet him today when he comes home to his hometown Sibulan.

Sibulan Mayor Antonio Renacia said Jaca will be duly recognized for giving honor to his hometown and placing Sibulan in the limelight.
The boxing star's trainer, Rex Salud, said Jaca's record is now 25 wins, one loss, one draw and 12 by knockouts.

Jaca will see action once again in March under the Bobby Pacquiao-Carlos Hernandez rematch. (PIA

Rare megamouth shark dies in Bayawan City
By Rachelle Nessia

Dumaguete City (31 January 2006) -- Fishermen found a rare five-meter megamouth shark wounded and struggling to free itself from a net just off the coast of Bayawan City.

According to a report from Alex Pal, station manager of the National Broadcasting Network here, the shark was estimated to weigh one ton and was towed to the city's boulevard by the fishermen who immediately called the local Department of Agriculture.
However, the shark died before it could be set free.

An officer from the local DA office disclosed that this was the second reported sighting of a megamouth in Bayawan City and probably the seventh in the Philippines. The first megamouth shark stranding in Bayawan City was recorded on December 30, 2004.

The megamouth shark is reportedly so rare that it could be only the 35th recorded specimen in the world. It is so named because it has a huge mouth that extends behind the eyes. It is characterized by a distinctive white band on the anterior surface of the snout and has approximately 50 rows of very small and numerous teeth on each jaw, but only three rows are functional. (PIA)

Common Moral Ground

Baguio City (31 January) -- While the CBCP has consistently given the administration a chance to act upon the prescriptions of the church body, Malacanang is making every effort in building trust and seeking middle ground on the issues raised in the CBCP pastoral statements. The setting up of electoral reform programs, monitoring anti-poverty projects and containing illegal gambling are being pursued jointly by the CBCP and the administration.

The better than expected economic performance albeit .2% short of the 5.3% projection, the historic high close of the peso at 52.250 along with the robust market and a 23.3% increase in OFW remittances is a luminous sign that the economic reforms and political consolidation are paying off favorably.

However, Malacanang said that the people should be aware that oil price hikes and political noise, if unabated, will weigh on the country's economic outlook.

Meanwhile, the palace statement junking the no-el scenario in 2007 has pulled the rug from under the opposition strategy and boosted the moral footing of the administration in the face of the CBCP call for the rejection of the controversial issue.

There will be elections in 2007 but we can be sure that President Arroyo will serve her full term unless the people say otherwise in a Constitutionally-sanctioned process.
Charter change is a campaign promise of the President and so is her mandate to do the best she can and to serve as long as her oath demands.

The administration had promised the people a complete overhaul of the system and a full term economic plan to go with it. We shall gear our country towards economic, political and social development through Charter change.

We shall leave no stone unturned in our endeavor to take the country to first world status in 20 years, with a new Constitution as our cornerstone. (PIA)

BFAR partially lifts shellfish ban in Region 8
By Marivic A. Alcober

Tacloban City (31 January 2006) -- Per laboratory examinations on ouse bio-assay fo shell meat samples and plankton analysis on toxic dinoflagellates in seawater samples collected along the waters of Naval, Biliran Province, Maqueda, Villareal Bay and Irong-irong Bay, and municipal waters of Tarangnan, Samar last January 16-18, conducted by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources through its Regional Director Gil A. Adora, it was found that Irong-irong Bay of Brgy. Mahayag, Catbalogan, Samar were found positive of red tide biotoxin.

The waters of Villareal Bay, along the municipal waters of Tarangnan, Samar and Maqueda Bay were found negative.

For those areas that were found to be free from toxic red tide, harvest and trading of shellfish such as tahong is allowable.

However, in areas which are positive of toxic red tide, harvest and trading of shellfish like tahong is banned. Fish, squids, shrimps and crabs are safe for human consumption provided that they are fresh and wash thoroughly and internal organs are removed before cooking. Alamang or hipon from red tide affected areas are not safe for human consumption. (PIA-8)

There will be elections in 2007 - Bunye

Manila (31 January 2006) -- "There will be elections in 2007 but we can be sure that President Arroyo will serve her full term unless the people say otherwise in a Constitutionally-sanctioned process."

Thus said Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye as the Palace ends the issue on the 'No-election' in 2007 following the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and former President Fidel V. Ramos' call to the Arroyo government to pursue the elections next year.

Bunye, who is also the Presidential Spokesman, said Charter change is a campaign promise of the President and so is her mandate to do the best she can and to serve as long as her oath demands.

"We have promised the people a complete overhaul of the system and full term economic plan go with it," he pointed out.

He stressed that the Arroyo administration shall gear the country towards economic, political, and social development through Charter change.

"We shall leave no stone unturned in our endeavor to take the country to first world status in 20 years, with a new Constitution as our cornerstone," Bunye added. (PIA-MMIO)

Cotabato receives 500 bags of Hybrid Yellow Corn seeds
by EJ Nacionales

Koronadal City (31 January 2006) -- Five hundred bags of Hybrid Yellow Corn seeds were given to the municipal government of Pikit, Cotabato along with the launching of new agribusiness lands in their place by the Department of Agriculture XII (DA 12).

DA 12 Director Abusama M. Alid said that the seeds provided by GSI and BioSeed companies amounted to P1, 500.00 per bag where P1, 200.00 will be shouldered by their agency and the remaining P300.00 will be sponsored by the local government of Pikit headed by Mayor Motin Malingco.

On the other hand, Alid disclosed that the new farmlands given to the municipality particularly in Buliok Complex will help generate jobs and reduce costs of wage goods since the agency will focus on the development of the said agribusiness lands.

"The implementation of new farmlands is a big contribution to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's 10-Point Agenda principally on job generation," Alid added.

Alid also stressed that other government interventions in the Complex are the development of farm to market roads, transportation, marketing center, housing and other infrastructure projects. (baundi/rafid/DA12/PIA 12)

Japan cautions Region 12 mango producers of pesticide misuse

Koronadal City (31 January 2006) -- The government of Japan cautioned mango producers of Region 12 and other areas with mango production on the misuse of a pesticide known as chlorpyrifos.
Chlorpyrifos is the common pesticide used in mangoes for mango hoppers.

Recent findings of Japan showed that the country's exported mangoes contained excessive residues of it that could be hazardous to health.

Department of Agriculture (DA) 12 Director Abusama M. Alid said that the first detection of the misuse was in September 2004 while the second was in December of the same year.

Alid disclosed that Japan gave its last warning to our mango exporters saying that they shall ban our exports, which if left unsolved, could greatly affect the present and future mango exports of the country.

In this regard, the Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority (FPA) appealed to all concerned in mango production to strictly follow the approved use of chlorpyrifos. (pasaol/rafid/DA12/EJ Nacionales/PIA 12)

Commentary: Common moral grounds vs destructive politics
By Henry S. Lagasca

San Fernando City, La Union (31 January 2006) -- The Arroyo administration got the clear message of our pastors offering solutions to the “moral crisis” drawing optimism that evil will be overcome “if public servants struggle for integrity and authentic reform in the political institutions they are part of which we perceived to be corrupted.”

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has consistently lamented how the “search for truth has become a means of furthering political ambition” by narrow politics.
President Arroyo has declared so many times of “principled cooperation and unity” and had already made her point several times to act upon the prescriptions of the CBCP. PGMA stressed that joint endeavors can be pursued in setting up electoral reforms to project that we have a common moral ground.

The bishops reiterated that they do not condone extra- constitutional means in resolving our present crisis because this will simply play into the hands of the opposition.

Incoming presidential chief of staff Michael Defensor proposed the creation of a third party within the CBCP to act as an independent body to find out the “truth” and called upon to tone down on politically-loaded issues that only add fuel to the political cauldron, destabilization attempts and the nasty opposition.

The CBCP statement read by Archbishop Angel Lagdameo says the country has no real alternative to her (President Arroyo) yet, distancing from the one bishops issued in July last year when PGMA detractors were counting on the church body to help speed up the destabilization plot of the “Hyatt 10”, Cory Aquino, the Drilon-faction Liberal Party and militant groups.

Many men and women working under the Arroyo government are selflessly and sincerely doing their sworn duty to serve the people, particularly the downtrodden. A good number of decent police and military men who are committed to boost the moral footing of the administration are supporting PGMA and the bishops in the campaign against destructive politics. (PIA Ilocos)

Forum on coco-biodiesel to be conducted in Tacloban

Tacloban City (January 31 2006) -â€" A forum on Coco-Biodiesel will be conducted at the DWU Audio-Visual Hall at 1:00 o’clock in the afternoon of February 9.

This was announced by Engr. Romulo Uy, the project coordinator who said that the forum aims to enlighten the public on the presence of the coco-biodiesel as an alternative source of fuel.
The forum is organized by the Urbi et Orbi, Inc. which is into the distribution of coco-biodiesel in the different provinces of Region 8. He said that the President of the company, Mr. Sammy yap, will be coming to Tacloban to make a demo on the many benefits that will be derived from using coco-biodiesel.

During the forum, Director Edilberto Nierva of the Philippine Coconut Authority will give the welcome remarks while Secretary Victor Domingo, Presidential Assistant for Eastern Visayas will deliver a message.

Leyte Governor Carlos Jericho Petilla is expected to deliver the inspirational talk. The provincial government of Leyte is one of the first users of coco-biodiesel in their vehicles using diesoline.

Mr. Samuel Yap will give a presentation on coco methyl ester. He is expected to demonstrate two the performance of two vehicles, one using coco-biodiesel and the other one, using just plain diesel.

The use of alternative source of energy is one of the priority projects of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo as it will save about PHP14 billion in the imported diesel consumption. The money which will be saved will be used instead to fund the basic social services for the benefit of the Filipino people especially the poor and the disadvantaged.

Memorandum Circular No. 55 mandated all government agencies and all government owned and controlled corporations to use 1% coco-biodiesel to their diesoline fueled vehicles. (PIA

Volunteer sees hope in Kalahi-CIDSS

Koronadal City (31 January 2006) -- "Our trust in the government system is being restored because of KALAHI-CIDSS", claimed Ronamae Robin, a volunteer of KALAHI-CIDSS project of Barangay San Miguel, Arakan, Cotabato.

KALAHI-CIDSS formally turned over on December 2005, a complete Overflow Bridge for the river that connects Sitio Kulafo to the nearby villages. Residents for decades were used crossing the river to go to neighboring sitios. There were succeeding tragedies that also claimed lives of the natives.

"When our sub-project was included by the KALAHI-CIDSS in its area of coverage, we were strengthened and unity arises among us", said Ronamae.

People now in the community can bring their agricultural products directly to the market. Passenger vehicles are now plying back and forth into the village.

Farming and Fishing is its major source of livelihood. Local Farmers have the difficulty to transport their agricultural products. Even students could not go to school because the river sometimes is impassable.

"Today, Sitio Kulafo is very much different. People are thankful of the project provided by the World Bank" Robin added.

"During the project's first cycle, everyone participated but failed of their expectation. It was not included in the list of prioritized sub-projects. But, It did not stop there, Instead, we make every effort so our sub-project, an overflow bridge, will be prioritized, and we were grateful, it was included by the second cycle", she added.

"We know and we are now exercising our rights. We developed self-confidence and ability to write a simple message in any language or dialects", revealed Robin.
"Through the project, Robin testified that children were encouraged by their parents to go to school. Parents are now aware how importance education is.

"As a community volunteer, I discovered different resources available in our locality, wisely and efficiently utilized these resources during our sub-project implementation stage.
In 1960's, a 12 year old Palao Mandiala remembers the Anikal couple who went fishing venture and never came home. Heavy rains that caused the Kulafo River to overflow, drowned then including Anikal's five children who went with them and none of the bodies were recovered.
Now, 56 year old Mandiala, clad in their traditional outfit, said the incident is still lingering in his mind. "My parents warned the couple to stay home because its dangerous crossing the river even staying along the river banks," he added. (DSWD-KALAHI/MSOC-PIA 12)

PNP readies ample security for WVRAA meet

ROXAS CITY (31 January 2006) -- The Philippine National Police (PNP) will provide adequate security at the Villareal Stadium and other venues of the 2006 Western Visayas Regional Athletic Association (WVRAA) Meet which will be hosted by Capiz from March 12-16.

PNP Provincial Director Sr. Supt. Cipriano Querol, Jr. assured Gov. Vicente Bermejo and officials of the Schools Division of Capiz of the Department of Education (DepEd) that they will be fielding PNP personnel before the start of the regional meet as part of the welcome protocol for arriving delegations from Aklan, Antique, Guimaras, Iloilo and Negros Occidental.
The PNP Provincial Director made the assurance during the meeting of all working committees of the host province held at the Hall of Governors of the Provincial Capitol last Jan. 30.
Gov. Bermejo attended the meeting presided over by Capiz Schools Division Superintendent Lagrimas Ubal to find out for himself the progress of the preparations for the hosting of the event.

Querol, who chairs the Meet’s security, peace and order committee with Roxas City PNP Chief Supt. Domingo Cabillan and Evarisco Magoncia of DepEd as co-chairpersons, said they will deploy personnel on a 24-hour basis at the Villareal Stadium other venues of competitions, schools where the delegations will be billeted, and key areas outside the stadium.
The PNP will have to assign some of its personnel outside of the Villareal Stadium, the main venue of the meet, because other competitions such as badminton, table tennis, chess, and literary-musical or cultural will be held in pre-designated venues in the city.

Meanwhile, the delegations including that of the host province will be billeted in the following schools: Aklan, Capiz National High School; Antique, Filamer Christian College; Capiz, Capiz National High School; Guimaras, Banica Elementary School; Iloilo, Capiz State University-Dayao Campus; and Negros Occ., Pres. Manuel Roxas Memorial School-North and South.
Technical officials for the five-day meet will also be billeted at the Capiz National High School situated just across the main entrance to the stadium.

More than 2,000 athletes and officials are expected to participate in this year’s WVRAA meet.
Querol said they will tap the support of Criminology students here in providing for the security needs of the regional competition. (PIA-JSC)

DOT promotes Philippine business mission to Japan
By Marivic A. Alcober

Tacloban City (31 January 2006) -- In celebration of 2006 as Philippine â€" Japan Friendship year, the Department of Tourism (DOT) in coordination with the Philippine Convention and Visitors Corporation, has lined up several activities to commemorate the 50 years of solid partnership and diplomatic relations between the two countries.

In an interview with DOT Regional Director Karina Rosa S. Tiopes, it was learned that relative to the celebration, one of the activities to be undertaken is the conduct of the 2nd Philippine Business Mission (PBM) to Japan covering the cities of Osaka, Nagoya and Tokyo on May 21-22, 23-24, 25-26 respectively.

Participation fee is US$300 for three cities and US$100 for one city per company with a maximum of 2 participants. Deadline for submission of participation form and payment will be on 15 March 2006.

Tiopes elaborated that the 1st PBM which was held last June 2005 has paved the way for a stronger Philippine presence in Japan. The conduct of the 2nd PBM will pave the way in promoting the country’s tourism opportunities and services.

Under the mission, there will be an opportunity for a Tourism Business Exchange between the Philippine suppliers and Japanese buyers.

Since the start of formal bilateral relations between the two countries, Japan has emerged as one of the Philippines’ most valued partners. Philippine-Japan relations remain strong and vibrant, characterized by a strong commitment to democratic principles and mutual cooperation in trade, investments and socio-cultural exchanges, and it has consistently remained as one of the Philippines’ largest source markets for tourism for the past ten years. (PIA-8)

South Cotabato PPO shines at PNP anniversary

Koronadal City (31 January 2006) -- The South Cotabato Police Provincial Office (SCPPO) was adjudged as the country's second "Best Provincial Office" during the 15th Philippine National Police (PNP) Anniversary held at Camp Crame, Quezon City last January 29, 2006.

This was confirmed by P/SSupt. Getulio P. Napeñas, SCPPO Provincial Director in a long distance interview just recently. It was only during his stint as Police Director that SCPPO was given such distinction.

Garnering the "Best Police Provincial Office" is Benguet Police Provincial Office, while Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office got the "3rd Best".

P/SSupt. Napeñas who hails from La Union, is a member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) class of 1982. He is bemedalled police officer with a string of international assignments in East Timor, Kosovo and Cambodia. He was also assigned in ARMM in Region 12 during his stint in Mindanao.

Prior to his assignment as Provincial Director last March 3, 2005, Napeñas was assigned as Chief of Staff of the Special Action Force, an elite unit of the PNP.
Upon assumption, he initiated strings of reforms, especially in its administrative and operational capabilities.

These reforms resulted in the successful campaigns against most wanted persons and criminals, illegal drugs, illegal loggers, anti-gambling and anti-terrorism with a net result of increased crime solution efficiency.

Capability building trainings and relevant seminars including the purchase of mission essential equipment were likewise conducted to boost the morale and welfare of the police officers.
The PNP Anniversary for Region 12 will be celebrated on February 6, 2006, Monday at their regional office at Brgy. Tambler, General Santos City. PC/Supt. Danilo Mangila, PNP Regional Director 12 will lead the celebration.

The SCPPO Women and Children's Protection Desk (WCPD) will also receive the award as the region's "Best WCPD" during the said celebration. (Fruto C. Sumagaysay, Jr./PIO/PIA 12)

DOLE celebrates Working Youth Day

Tacloban City (31 January 2006) -- February 15, 2006 will be marked as Working Youth Day, in which the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) region 8 has lined up several activities for the day.

As the theme, "Batang Mangagawa: Dakila Ka" denotes, the yearly affair will surely give honors as well as acknowledge the efforts our Filipino youth have contributed to the total national economic development.

To promote public awareness of the celebration, a motorcade around Tacloban City will start at 12:30 in the afternoon, after which a mass will be said, followed by the cutting of ribbon for the exhibit of different agencies’ programs and services.

The highlight of the activities will be the Laro ng Lahi, a showcase of old native games, to be participated in by some 150 youth workers in the city.

The day’s affair will also feature a variety show whose professional performers will also come from the youth cluster.

The working youth are the young Filipino workers who are among the program beneficiaries of President Arroyo’s Job Creation thrust, through the efforts of the Department of Labor and Employment. (PIA

Koronadal City (31 January 2006) -- In KALAHI-CIDSS project, I saw Allah's gift to us," state Banjo Mandagya.

"Now KALAHI-CIDSS is in our village, we are thankful because our sub-project was included in the list of prioritized sub-projects. At least our hardships will be lessened," relates Mandagya.

Mandagya likewise testified that through series of trainings under the sixteen steps process, he learned new things. "Because of KALAHI, my self confidence was developed. I learned also the job of being a bookkeeper, an engineer and an accountant," the BSPMC official cited.

When I arrived here in 1992, "I saw the problem - there's no source of clean water. Its really difficult for us," community leader Banjo Mandagya, who became Barangay Sub-Project Monitoring Committee Chief, when KALAHI-CIDSS project selected this town based on the municipal poverty mapping, said in Maguindanawon dialect.

Oftentimes when I arrived home tired from a day long work at the farm, I still have to hike and fetch water for drinking, bared Mandagya.

Water is a primary need of every individual. But for residents of barangay Poblacion, Lutayan, Sultan Kudarat, we never had enough potable water for several years now.

One of the villagers claimed they will be hiking about 13 kilometers just to fetch clean water which cost P10.00 per container. Although people shared the hard life for the past decades, they still remain hopeful and thankful to Allah for their spiritual leaders have always that stand that someday somehow development will be implemented in their area.

Mandagya is among the 1,320 households who find difficulty in looking for source of potable water. The social condition is very much alarming for sometimes, most of the villagers fetch their drinking water at the Lake Buluan.

Kamad Sali, 29 years old, also asserted that by the time this sub-project is fully completed, they will never purchase gallons of water and people in the village will soon be able to engage in additional productive activities.

Over 200 teenagers in this barangay, are out-of-school-youth and seventy percent of the total population are illiterate. Majority of the people in this place have no toilets. Many of them especially children suffered from water-borne illnesses like diarrhea, cholera, hepatitis and skin diseases. Nevertheless, people in this impoverished village, will soon enjoy safe, potable drinking water for currently, KALAHI-CIDSS, a flagship program of the government, funded by a P9.5-billion government loan from the World Bank, is now actively working hand-in-hand with the local officials of Barangay, Poblacion, Lutayan to finish a Water System sub-project within the first quarter of 2006. The project in this village is one of the several infrastructure anti-poverty sub-projects of KALAHI-CIDSS.

The towns of Lutayan and Columbio are among the poorest municipalities in Sultan Kudarat Province based on the poverty mapping where primary indicators are the quality of human capital, housing and amenities and access to centers of trade.

All barangays in a municipality are eligible to participate in the program. Under this program, community beneficiaries may avail of infrastructure projects such as classrooms, daycare centers, health centers, spring development project or a water system. Through a community assembly, residents can evaluate their needs and eventually come up with a project proposal. After which, the project is submitted for a final deliberation and approval to a municipal inter-barangay forum. After approval of the proposal, community leaders will then endorse it to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for funding. During the implementation stage, the community takes the lead role by conducting the bidding, purchases the needed materials and facilitates the construction of the project.

Currently, the KALAHI-CIDSS is also implementing various projects in Arakan, Cotabato, Malungon and Malapatan, Sarangani and T'boli, South Cotabato. (DSWD-KALAHI/MSOC-PIA 12)

All-Visayas creative writing workshop to be staged in Region 8

Tacloban City (January 31 2006) -â€" In order to encourage the creation OF Literature in the Visayan language as a way of expanding the frontiers of Philippine Literature and to provide training for the Visayan Literary artists, the third Panagsugat, All Visayas Creative Writing Workshop will be held at the UP Visayas Tacloban College on April 15 to 20, 2006.

Ms. Merle Alunan, director of the 3rd Panagsugat, informed PIA that the workshop aims to create a venue for the discussion of Literature and Literary Studies, to encourage book production and to serve the needs of literature teachers in the Visayas.

The Workshop, she said, has two components, the writers’ program and the teachers’ grant. In the Writers’ Program, the writers will compete for the twenty slots available by sending in a set of works which may consist of one or combination of five poems, two short stories, a chapter from a novel completed or in progress, creative non-fiction, a one-act play, or an act from a longer play. The works may be written in any of the major Visayan languages ( Cebuano, Wary, Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a or Akeanon), Filipino or English. Three hard copies must be sent in and a diskette in 12 points New Times Roman accompanied by a letter signifying the writer’s intention to participate.

For the Teachers’ Grant, six schools will be invited to participate preferably those running creative writing programs. The schools will nominate two participants among their Literature teachers and cover the transportation cost. The Teachers’ grant will cover the seminar fee and board and lodging. Fifteen Teachers Grant are available and will be distributed among the three Regions of the Visayas.

Ms. Alunan said that the Workshop hopes to discover the best writers of Region VIII through the Workshop. She said that the workshop will be a good opportunity to begin an inventory of the poets and storytellers of the Region.

Deadline for submission of entries is on February 25, 2006. (PIA

LGUs briefed on gradual reduction of contraceptives
By Rebecca Cadavos

MAASIN CITY (31 January 2006) -- In the year 2008, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) will not anymore donate different contraceptive supplies to the local government units throughout the province.

Integrated Provincial Health Office Midwife !V Victoria Generan revealed during an interview that due to the changes, Contraceptive Distribution Logistics Information System (CDLMIS) conducted a training to rural health nurses and midwives here at Ampil Pensione, Maasin City, January 31, 2006.

USAID will start a gradual reduction yearly on the supplies of contraceptives which the local government units depended for twenty years. Before the year 2008, LGUs will now give their counterpart in the purchase of said supplies, Generan said.

Series of planning workshops were already made throughout the (18) municipalities and (1) city, this province, in preparation for the revision of CDLMIS, she said. LGU will base their purchase on the needs of their clients.

Two options were mentioned by Generan. First, the client will be the one to buy the contraceptive if they can afford it, and second, the LGU will be the one to purchase the supply if the client can’t afford to buy.

The one-day training sponsored by Local Enhancement and Development (LED) was attended by two health personnel in each Rural Health Units throughout the province and the members of the CDLMIS technical group.

IPHO Provincial Health Officer Dr. Leonardo Eway welcomed the participants andthe training was facilitated by representatives from JSI, a private entity and Management Science for Health, Generan further added. (PIA-Maasin)

Full implementation of VAT on

Iloilo City (31 January 2006) -- The Department of Finance has said that the conditions needed to for the government to increase the VAT rate can be met. It is optimistic it will be able to meet the required deficit-to-GDP (gross domestic product) ratio for implementing the increase in the value-added tax (VAT) to twelve percent up from ten percent starting February 1.

According to Secretary of Finance Margarito TeVes, only one of two conditions need to be met for the government to increase the VAT rate and it anticipates that the ratio required would exceed the minimum allowed under the law.

Under the New VAT Law, the President is allowed to increase the sales tax rate if the deficit exceeds 1.5 percent of GDP and when VAT collections exceed 2.8 percent of the total economic output.

Per figures released by NEDA, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose by 5.1 percent in 2005, reaching the high-end of the NEDA forecast of 4.87 to 5.1 percent growth. Government was able to contain its full year fiscal deficit to P 146.5 billion better than the expected target of P 189 billion. In 2006, the deficit is expected to fall to 124.9 billion or 2.21 percent of GDP.
The full implementation of the VAT is expected to generate for government some P77 billion to P82 billion in 2006, which are intended primarily for social services and infrastructure projects according to Secretary Teves. (PIA 6)

Let the people be heard

Iloilo City (31 January 2006) -- Vox Populi, Vox Dei. The voice of the people is the voice of God. Malacanang has heeded this call, after carefully studying and listening to what people really want.

For the first time, Malacanang, through Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita has categorically stated that elections for Parliament will push through in 2007. There is now no stopping the move for charter change towards the Parliamentary system.

Malacanang has always said that it will be the people who will ultimately decide whether to hold an election or not. The recommendation of the Consultative Commission was only just that - a recommendation.

It is time to bury the No Elections proposal once and for all so that preparations can be made for the proposed elections. The No El was not a viable option, in these times of political crises, as seen from the various reactions of politicians, even from the administration party, the opposition and the church.

We have seen the same old faces, lording it over in our political system. It is high time to elect fresh new faces, faces whose only agenda is service, and faces who can bring a new vision and fresh breath to the political arena.

Let the people express themselves. Let them exercise their right to be heard. (PIA)

The impact of R-VAT
By Renee F. De Guzman

San Fernando City, La Union (31 January 2006) -- The values of simplicity and frugality become handy to Ilocanos as the nation braces up for the implementation of the Reformed Value Added Tax (R-VAT) law.

Effective February 1st the value added tax will be raised from the present rate of 10 percent to 12 percent as confirmed by the Department of Finance.

The implementation of the 12 percent VAT is in pursuance of the government's short-term goal of balancing the budget and raising more funds for development.

E-VAT or R-VAT is a consumption tax and will spare no one as it will affect everybody, whether rich or poor it is one bitter bill for all Filipinos to swallow for the good of the country.
As Secretary Rene Velasco of the Philippine Information Agency said, the R-VAT law necessitates a short-term sacrifice for a long lasting reward in terms of more jobs, livelihood opportunities, better social services, more infrastructures and lesser debt.

To cushion the impact of the E-VAT especially among the poor and the marginalized, the government is adopting mitigating measures or safety nets such as; the removal of excise tax on oil and energy, fuel discounts for PUJs, close monitoring of prices of prime commodities, strict implementation of fare discounts to students and senior citizens among others.

In a way, the expanded tax law will not only reform the taxation system but even the consumers as it will have positive impact on both the country and on the personal lifestyle and values of the Filipinos especially the young ones.

Under the E-VAT, the more one buys the more is taxed. Hence, consumers will then learn to become practical and wise buyers and users which will redown to less wastages of goods and services, the offshoot of which, could be translated to more savings. Thus, many Filipinos will learn to live the Ilocanos' life; simple, practical, and frugal yet productive.

Initially, like any change, the new tax system as expected will create all sorts of resistance. However, people will eventually realize that the fruits of their little sacrifice will bear good and lasting consequences for the Filipino nation and for the Filipino as a consumer. (PIA Ilocos)

Commentary: Let the people’s voice prevail on Cha-cha

Tacloban City (January 31 2006) â€"- President Gloria Macapagal’s humble acceptance of the CBCP suggestion to basket the No-el proposal of Concom, is a tangible manifestation of her firm belief for the democratic processes and the rule of law. The President just showed that she is a President who listens to the voice of the people in a democratic society. For her the opinion of each and every Filipino counts and must be heard.

As the Palace said, there will be elections in 2007 unless the people say otherwise in a constitutionally sanctioned process.

The continuous debate on Charter Change is encouraged in all sectors of the country. Even the opposition is encouraged to engage in a healthy debate on charter change. It is the only way by which the people will be enlightened on the specific proposals.

Charter change is a campaign promise of the President. In fact, among the presidential candidates, she is the only one who promised charter change. She is fulfilling her campaign promises and so is her mandate to do the best she could and to serve as long as her oath demands.

She has promised the people a complete overhaul of the system and a full term economic development plan to go with it. The country is now experiencing the result of the economic measures that were implemented to a great economic take off.

With her leading, the country is geared towards economic, political and social development through Charter Change. In order that the change will be for the best, every option must be discussed and debated upon by all the sectors of the society but especially those who are supposed to lead the people to the right point of view.

The invitation for the opposition to join in the debate for charter change stands. Their commitment to the vow they have made to serve the people should prod them to heed the Filipino people’s cry for change.

In the end, it is the general clamor of the people and the people’s decision which must prevail. (PIA

PGMA inaugurates projects, distributes rice in Guimbal town

Iloilo City (31 January 2006) -- In her recent visit to Guimbal, a southern town of this province, President Arroyo inaugurated projects, distributed iron-fortified rice and awarded Botika ng Bayan certificates of endorsements to beneficiaries which are part of her administration's thrust to provide basic services such as affordable medicines and food as well as to spur domestic tourism.

The President was warmly welcomed by residents, town and barangay officials led by Guimbal Mayor Richard Garin, Congresswoman Janette Garin, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales, Education Secretary Fe Hidalgo, Presidential Assistant and MEDCO Secretary Jesus Dureza and Presidential Adviser Oscar Garin.

She then led the ribbon cutting of the town's newly - constructed Police/Tourist Information Center, Senior Citizen's Building and the P 11-million Guimbal Gymnasium.

Assisted by Education Secretary Fe Hidalgo, Congresswoman Janette Garin and Mayor Richard Garin, President Arroyo had the symbolic distribution of the 100 sacks of iron-fortified rice under the "Bigas Para sa Mag-aaral at Pamilya" program of the Department of Education (DepEd) by handing out one kilogram of iron-fortified rice to pupil representatives of the 12 public elementary schools in Guimbal.

President Arroyo, assisted by Congresswoman Garin and Mayor Garin, also awarded Botika Ng Bayan certificates of endorsements to the representatives of the seven municipalities in the first district of Iloilo comprising the municipalities of Oton, Tigbauan, Guimbal, Tubungan, Miag-ao, Igbaras and San Joaquin.

Before the President's arrival, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales assisted by other government officials led the ribbon cutting of the Botika ng Bayan.

President Arroyo said that she was informed that the medicines that will be sold at the Botika ng Bayan in Guimbal is less than 50 percent of prevailing market price because Congresswoman Garin has directly tapped pharmaceutical companies. The Barangay Health Workers (BHWs) who were given the task to implement this program will receive 20 percent of the total sales of the cheaper medicines as an incentive.

In her speech, President Arroyo said the completion of the proposed construction of the Guimbal Port will make travel from the first district of Iloilo to Negros Occidental easier without having to go to Iloilo City which is 29 kilometers away.

Congresswoman Garin said the bidding of the Guimbal port will be made soon and this is expected to be operational by middle of next year.

Further, President Arroyo announced the plan to construct a railroad from Caticlan, Malay, Aklan to Guimbal so that visitors from the famous tourist destination Boracay Island can also visit this municipality, one of the best tourist destinations in the province.

"Daku nga proyekto, dugay ang preparasyon but we have to start sometime", President Arroyo said in local dialect. She also told the audience that as reflected in the Medium Term Development Plan (MTDP) the thrust for Central Philippines where Visayas is included is tourism. Having this direction, President Arroyo said that the "most business friendly town" and the "cleanest and greenest" municipality in Western Visayas like Guimbal will become one of the important tourist destinations in the country.

Congresswoman Garin said that while at the Guimbal National High School the President noticed the school's big population and was concerned about the classroom facilities for the students. The President then directed her to allocate P400,000 for the school. She also mentioned that President Arroyo allocated P11 million for the water system of the municipality of Tubungan and another P10 million for the same project in Igbaras while for the repair of the farm to market road in Oton town she allocated P4 million. (PIA)

NSO launches civil registration month
by Ninfa B. Quirante

Tacloban City (31 January 2006) -- The National Statistics Office (NSO) Samar Branch will be launching the Civil Registration Month with a Eucharistic celebration and a motorcade on February 1, 2006.

In a letter sent to partner agencies, NSO chief Letecia Chu stressed the significance of civil registration in our life. The activity mainly focuses on the availability of the Barangay Civil Registration System (BCRS). The BCRS eases difficulties of the barangay folks as it is authorized to conduct registration in the barangay .

Ms. Ophelia Royandoyan, Catbalogan Local Civil Registrar told PIA that registration in Catbalogan is not much of a problem since most barangays are easily reached by information. Besides, she said, last year, the Mobile Registration Team has rounded all barangays of Catbalogan. Plan Philippines, a non-government entity pushing for the realization of the number one right of every child: to have a name and a nationality, confirmed that Catbalogan was the number one awardee in terms of the number of children duly registered at birth.

To complete the registration of the children of Samar, seminars about BCRS has been conducted in some 80% of all barangays in Samar and a whooping 100% in Plan covered Barangays like Daram, Sta. Margarita, Zumarraga and Tarangnan according to Celesa Chavez, Plan Project Officer in Tarangnan.

NSO has meanwhile completed a training of the BCRS in Pagsanghan town today, said Asst. Provincial Statistics Officer, Romeo Gabatbat. The male assistant said that though NSO targets a 100% registration, it is satisfied that some 75% registration has been accomplished.
To further increase awareness of the relevance of civil registration, a series of public attention getting activities have been scheduled.

In related development, Catbalogan LGU is doing a temporary listing of birth registration, this is done, Royandoyan said to ensure that there is no double registration. Some parents, she said try to enlist their already registered children to get new copies of certificates. She cautioned them to avoid this. She explained that they have a system that would easily spot this double registration, ‘kawang la an form ngan an kabudlay,’ ( Forms and time are wasted.)She said in the dialect. Parents she said should be honest.

She also encouraged the parents to make it their obligation to register every milestone not only birth but even deaths said Royandoyan.

Meanwhile, all systems go for the launching as NSO tried to mobilize all concerned agencies to unite in the launching ceremony and prove how true is the year’s theme, "Civil Registration: Our Responsibility". (PIA)

More infra projects near completion in Hernani town

Tacloban City (31 January 2006) -- Residents of San Isidro might soon neglect their narrow trail leading to and from their place as the farm to market road in this far flung barangay of Hernani is nearing completion.

This was the report of Mayor Cesar Tagun in a short interview with Sammy Candido of PIA, Borongan. Now that the much needed road construction will soon be completed, farmers in this part of the municipality will find it better and easier to transport their products to the poblacion, Tagun added. The 2.5 kilometer road project is funded by DAR-ADB costing P6.8M with the ten percent LGU counterpart.

It was further learned that several plains of farmlands, cocolands and hills were traversed by the project hence the cost. At present, the stipulated 200 concrete stretch had already been done while the rest is being gravelled. Residents, school children specifically of nearby Sitio Lingsad, Padang are most likely to benefit likewise the project.

In addition, the rehabilitation of Lingsad-Carmen Communal Irrigation System is also in its full swing of construction. The Chief Executive assured that the work is now on its 35% completion. Covering some 65 hectares of Riceland in the Hernani agrifarm, the Hernaninhons are likely ensured of an increased rice production and stability in rice supply this year. Today with the concerted efforts of Congressman Nonoy Libanan, Governor Evardone, and Mayor Tagun together with the municipal council of Hernani, the irrigation project will soon benefit the farmers in this Hernani town. (PIA-E. Samar)

PRESI TO PARLIA?
(Part III )
By Yes Tirol Dumagan
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

For the other two weeks, I had discussed on the debate that I participated with the proposition: Resolved that Parliamentary Form of Government be Adopted.

For a recap, I had discussed the beneficiality part during the first part of this topic while necessity on its second part. I said that it is beneficial because not to push for the shift of system, from presidential to parliamentary.

I had cited four arguments on its beneficilatiy. First, the loss of systemic checks and balances in a parliamentary form as opposed to the presidential. Second, in the parliamentary form, the Prime Minister is not accountable to the people because he/she will not be elected directly by the people but rather only the selected few who do not and cannot actually represent the whole. Third, we lack strong, platform-oriented political parties. In the absence of this, such shift to parliamentary is absurd as this is the very pre-requisite to a strong parliamentary system. Fourth, the parliamentary form of government would promote regionalism or regionalistic attitude with regards to how we develop our country side since the PM would be accountable only to (1) the people who voted him directly in his congressional district and (2) to those of his fellow parliamentarians who voted him as PM and therefore he has to pay back by putting in more money on the congressman who puts him in place.

I had cited two arguments for the necessity portion. First, the question of political deadlock. Our knowledge and our observation from other parliamentarian countries now tell us that the initiators of this push for change in system is actually barking up the wrong tree. See, the question for political deadlock in the presidential form is between the executive and legislative branches. In the kind of parliamentary form we are pushing, such gridlock will be reduced since we will be adopting a unicameral form, meaning, the executive and legislative will not be divided as independent branches, rather, will be combined dependently, true. But in the empirical view with the our status quo in our country right now, such a “problem” in the presidential form between the executive and legislative branches is actually not a problem. We can see right now that the executive and the House (legislative) is in fact in unity. The fact of the matter is, the House is backing up and supporting the President to whatever her decisions are. Even the results of the impeachment against the Executive is still in favor of her. Therefore, such push is not necessary. Second, it is therefore not necessary to adopt such a kind of government in our country now because I see that given the political greed among our political figures right now, such shift will actually just promote more legitimate power to whoever our Prime Minister will be to be in power for as long as he/she wants.

Now, I say that it is even not practicable to adopt such form in our country, now. It can’t be done. How so? There are three ways on how to legitimately change our present presidential form as stated in the 1987 Constitution. First, is through People’s Initiative (PI). The PI, under the constitution requires an enabling law. In the 1997 case of Santiago vs Comelec, the Supreme Court with the vote of 12 to 3, 12 concurring and 3 dissenting judges actually threw out the supposed enabling law, now it can’t be acted because of the lack of the enabling law. However, let’s just assume that there is an enabling law and we can use PI. The constitution requires a certain percentage of all votes in all districts. How are you suppose to do that when in fact you have Benigno Aquino III and Jejomar Binay who are totally against this charter change. Second, the Constituent Assembly (ConAss) which will consist of the House of Representatives and the House of Senate which they can vote separately or together. But in any case they will not approve it, the opposition â€" senate, opposition congressman, party list representatives â€" have more than ¼ required vote to oppose any such push from any government official who merely wants to extend his or her term and merely wants to institutionalize partisan politics. Third, the Constitutional Convention (Concon). How much billions of pesos are we needing for this one? Can we instead allot all these billions of pesos to other more basic needs the Filipinos need? We couldn’t afford to make the biggest mistake just by hurriedly pushing such a shift. Therefore I remain that this such push is not practicable.

Therefore, I say that proper dissemination of information regarding this is necessary. Eight months (according to the chacha train) is not enough to allow the people to fully understand this nature. Refer to the recent Pulse Asia Survey and you’d know that 76% of Filipinos have less knowledge on our constitution, the very bible of the land. Our very constitution which we seek its familiarity for about twenty years already versus an eight-month crash course of learning the parliamentary. Would that be fair enough for all of us Filipinos?

Let’s think first before we act. Let’s consider the general welfare of the Filipinos more than any personal greedy intentions. Yes, parliamentary is a good form of a democratic government, but I’d say that it’s not applicable in our country now. Not now. As I’ve said, there are still other pushing issues that our government should face first.

Who's To Blame?
Lines for our Children, Part 2
By Atty Cristifil "Chic" Baluma
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

October is the Month of Children, hence, here’s once more about children.

Under the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006, (Republic Act 9344),

those who are below eighteen (18) years of age are children. Their criminal liability starts when they are above fifteen (15) years of age to eighteen (18) years or below when they act with discernment in the commission of the offense.

Under The Special Protection of Children against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act, Republic Act No. 7610 children refers to persons below eighteen (18) years of age or those over but are unable to fully take care of themselves or protect themselves from abuse, neglect, cruelty, exploitation or discrimination because of a physical or mental disability or condition.

Under Philippine laws, the term children is not limited only to those who are enrolled in schools from Grade 1 to Grade VI in our primary and elementary schools. Those who are school drop-outs, those roaming in the streets because they are mental retardates or driven by poverty, those unable to fully take care of themselves due to any physical or mental disability or condition even if their ages are above eighteen years, they are children in the concept of our present laws who deserve care and concern from the State through our local government units, from entities like the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the police, the prosecution offices, the Courts. Infact the concern starts in the family and spread to the different sectors-the schools, the media, the community-has each role to play.

Recognizing their tender years of innocence, their frailties, susceptibility to the maneuvering of adults and that they can be easily swayed by adults in their judgment, the State exercises protection over them in parens patriae being the guardian of the unable, helpless and the defenseless.

Being a new law, there is much to know and learn about the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006. The alternative to children brought into the criminal justice system and for them to be placed under intervention and diversion programs should be understood by those concerned tasked to implement the law, the different sectors of the community which has its specific roles under the law. The family, the educational system, the mass media, the local government units are expected to do their respective responsibilities.

All local government units (LGU’s) are mandated that they “shall appoint a duly licensed social worker as its social welfare and development officer tasked to assist children in conflict with the law” (Sec.16, Republic Act 9344).

Local Councils for the Protection of Children ( LCPC) shall be established in all levels of local government, and where they have already been established, they shall be strengthened within one (1) year from the effectivity of this Act. Membership in the LCPC shall be chosen from among the responsible members of the community, including a representative from the youth sector, as well as representative from government and private agencies concerned with the welfare of children (Sec. 15. RA 9344).

“One percent (1%) of the internal revenue allotment of barangays, municipalities and cities shall be allocated for the strengthening and implementation of the programs of the LCPC: provided, that the disbursement of the fund shall be made by the LGU concerned.” (Par 3, Sec. 15, RA 9344).

“ A comprehensive juvenile intervention program covering at least a 3-year period shall be instituted in LGUs from the barangay to the provincial level. The LGUs shall set aside an amount necessary to implement their respective intervention programs in their annual budget.” (Sec. 18, RA 9344).

What is the duty of the law enforcement officer (he may the local police or the Tanod of the barangays) who had the initial contact with the child after taking custody of the child?

The law enforcement officer having the first contact with the child shall immediately determine the age of the child by obtaining documents from the parents, guardians or relatives of the child, the office of the Local Civil Registrars or the National Census and Statistics Office that show proof of the age of the child such as the birth certificate of the child, the baptismal certificate and/or any other pertinent documents.

When the child is determined to be below 15 years of age at the time of the commission of the offense, the authority who had the initial contact of the child shall immediately release the child to the custody of the parents, his guardian or in the absence thereof, the child’s nearest relative.

The authority which had the initial contact with the child shall give notice to the Local Social Welfare and Development Officer who will determine the appropriate intervention programs. The child may be released to any registered non-governmental or religious organization; a barangay official, to a member of the Barangay Council for the Protection of Children (BCPC), to a local social welfare and development officer or to the Department of Social Welfare and Development when and where appropriate when the parents, guardians or the nearest relative is not located or refused to take custody.

When the child is above 15 years but below 18 years, the authority which had the initial contact refers the child to the Local Social Welfare Officer for the determination whether the child was acting with discernment at the time of the commission of the offense.

The concern for children- 18 years below, those who are unable to fully take care of themselves or protect themselves from abuse, cruelty, exploitation or discrimination due to physical and mental challenges- is the very essence, rationale of RA 9344- is the Philippine’s answer to a global call that children shall be protected as they are the promise of the land.

By Paul Borja
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

After the triumph of Manny Paquiao came the tragedy of the Ultra 74. There couldn’t be more distressing images of how we are faring as a nation than the sequencing of these two events together. In the first, millions of Filipinos came out to pin their hopes and then to hail the victory of one man in a very brutal sport, as if he were the last remaining hope of the country. In the second, a one-million peso prize money brought out thousands of Filipinos to try their luck in a TV game show, as if this were their last chance to escape poverty, only for 74 luckless people to die in a quite brutal way.

In both instances, however, we showed our propensity to place an inordinate amount of hope on someone or something we believe could turn things around or make everything better for us. More properly these are called acts of desperation. As a nation, we may have reached new lows in our collective despair that a boxer could turn millions into a frenzy of jubilation and a TV game show transform thousands into a stampeding horde.

And to think that only twenty years ago to this month, the Filipinos jubilantly stampeded to freedom from a veritable prison called the Marcos regime. In our recent history, the 1986 EDSA people power revolt may have been the high point in our collective journey for it certainly raised hopes for a new beginning for the country. Unfortunately, it seems that from that high point the journey has been downhill ever since.

With the present administration under a continuing cloud of political crisis, we are now being herded into another kind of stampede that is being hailed as the beginning of much-desired national reforms: the move to change the EDSA constitution. While recognizing the flaws of the EDSA constitution itself, it is highly doubtful whether the proposed Arroyo constitution, for this is what it essentially is, could turn things around or make everything better for us. But this is precisely what the Arroyo administration wants us to believe, and has impelled upon the Filipinos to adopt groups not only fear that big businesses will come to dominate even more the use and destruction of our coastal areas but likewise fear what the word “etc.” really means in the order. Deliberate vagueness is certainly the refuge of the ill-intentioned; in this case, the intention is certainly to deceive the people and to create a loophole big enough for anything and everything to be put inside it.

And in almost the same bad breath, Defensor cancelled more than 1,700 community-based forestry management agreements (CBFMA) thus revealing the real intentions of the order to displace and deprive local communities of access to mangrove and coastal resources, the better for the big businesses to come in and gobble up everything in their wake. Recently, we learned that one of the CBFMAs cancelled by DENR involved local organizations located in our very own Maribojoc Bay area, which comprise one of Bohol’s largest nipa areas. Communities there have long depended on the nipa for a livelihood by making shingles for roofing materials.

Nothing could be more sustainable, economically viable and equitable than the nipa shingle making industry managed by communities in the Maribojoc Bay area. Yet, in one single blow, Defensor and DENR may soon be depriving our own shingle makers not only with a livelihood but with access to the extensive nipa resources in the area that could be turned into a vast wasteland of fishponds and other corporate ventures. Several years ago, communities in the Cortes-Maribojoc areas rose up against an attempt to develop a large fishpond in the area, and succeeded to stop the project. Now, there may no longer be any stopping to similar attempts in the future with passage of the DENR order. Moreover, existing fishponds in the area could be expected to inexplicably grow in size like a cancerous pale tumor in a sea of green. Concerns over the environmental and socio-economic implications of the order even boiled over to local scientists that the Philippine Association of Marine Science (PAMS) issued a position paper criticizing it. PAMS warned of “despair, frustration and social unrest” sweeping coastal communities as a result of the order. For the moment, the DENR has reportedly been forced to review the order due to the widespread opposition against it from different sectors. But whether said review would yield significant changes remains to be seen. The damage however has been done and the cards of this administration revealed when it comes to its priorities, which is certainly not to defend local communities and the environment.

That Mike Defensor was transferred from DENR to Malacanang after issuing the controversial order is revealing enough. When worse comes to worst, the defense of the occupants of Malacanang takes priority over everything else. With “environmental defenders” like Defensor, perhaps we won’t mind a Manny Pacquiao throwing a punch or two his way.

FOR THE SAFETY OF OUR CHILDREN
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper
PART 2

Here’s a feedback from my sister, Jet based in California, U.S.A., a mother juggling between raising 3 precocious kidsâ€"TJ, Ana and Brandon-and studying nursing. It’s on my last Sunday’s article, “For the Safety of our Children” where I cited safety regulations for riding children in U.S. and Europe:

“Gee, include the need of helmets for bike-riding. Kids here, 0-12 yrs old, are not allowed to sit at the front mainly because during accidents, when the airbag - that thing nga mura'g balloon nga mo-inflate sa vehicle to cushion - comes off at impact, it kills a child that young. Limit na lang the no. of passengers allowed in a motorcycle instead of a law for the seating arrangement in a motorcycle....also limit the age of kids allowed to ride w/ grown-ups in a motorcycle (e.g., 0-12 ba kaha) instead of letting the kid sit in front (i think this is likewise not advisable). gud luck.”

I thank Jet for the suggestions. It may be recalled that last Sunday, I wrote about the accident I witnessed about a week ago during which a kid, about 7 years old, fell off from the moving motorcycle after he rode on the rear of the vehicle way behind the driver, the female passenger and his bag. In my article, I wrote that I admonished the woman to make the child sit between the driver and herself for the child’s safety.

When I wrote the article, I was limited by the reality that in our province, most of the residents have to make do with motorcycles for bringing their kids to and from school because of their understandable inability to buy cars. So, to my thinking, the most that we could do here is to call for the regulation of the seating arrangement of kids riding on motorcycles.

The most ideal regulations would, of course, be those suggested by Jet, as practised in the U.S. and in Europe. Prohibit kids between 0-12 years of age from riding at the front of cars. Require helmets also for bike-riders and motorcycle passengers. Limit the number of riders on motorcycles to two-the driver and one passenger. Prohibit kids 12 years old and below from riding on motorcycles.

Of course, if these regulations are not followed, it should not be the kids that should be penalized, but the parent/guardian/adult riding with the kids.

We likewise maintain that the seat-belt law should be strictly implemented. I am not aware if the existing seat-belt law covers children riding at the back of cars, as usually, the seat-belt law is imposed against passengers riding in front.

Rules on riding children have never been included in our national laws on children, e.g., the Anti-Child Abuse Act. The nearest applicable provision would be that on “neglect” of children which is, however, more general than specific. We have no national law yet specifically on how to make it safe for riding children.

Neither have rules on riding children been included in the Bohol Children’s Code, even while I was a member of its Technical Working Group (TWG).

This should be a good starting point for our city lawmakers, led by Vice-Mayor Jas Montes, who are now in the process of drafting the City Children’s Code.

I was invited to the consultation last September 22 at 2:00 p.m. for the said drafting but was not able to make it. Unfortunately, I had a hearing in Talibon that Friday morning and I arrived in Tagbilaran only at almost 3:00 p.m., “lunchless.” Our hearing wound up at almost 12:00 noon and I didn’t want to eat my lunch in Talibon and be delayed further from my trip back home. Hence, I endured an empty stomach for almost 3 hours. Resultantly, I was too tired to attend to any work after my late lunch.

Perhaps, if given the chance to attend another consultation, I would take up the cudgels and lobby for the inclusion of rules on riding children, raising the accident I witnessed. Otherwise, members of the Sangguniang Panglungsod who may chance upon my last Sunday’s and today’s articles could take the cue.

As to the Bohol Children’s Code, while it has taken effect for 6 years already, it is regrettable that until now, it has no Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR).

The Bohol Children’s Code pioneers the penalization of some cultural forms of “disciplining” children, like making the child kneel on salt, or putting the child inside a sack and hanging the sack, or hitting a child with objects like chalks or erasers, etc… It likewise punishes the commodification of children like arranged marriages or requiring the girls to participate in benefit dances during which the men dance with them after they pay the organizing group fees representing the perceived “value” of the girls.

The Bohol Children’s Code likewise makes illegal the enactment of school rules prohibiting pregnant students from graduating even if they had complied with all the academic requirements.

We recently raised this matter involving one of the universities here. After some noise was made by the student government, the rule-which turned out to be without the blessings of the higher school authorities-was scrapped.

Years back, I also represented a pregnant graduating Engineering student who was told that in order to graduate, she would have to get married, whether with the father of the child she was carrying or with any man if the father refuses to marry her. Fortunately, our letter of opposition based on the provisions of the Bohol Children’s Code was given due merit and the student was allowed to graduate.

We cannot discount the power of our local ordinances on children. Hence, we firmly lobby for the inclusion of rules on riding children in our upcoming City Code on Children. Or better yet, likewise amend the Bohol Children’s Code for the same reason.

Time for a deeper look
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

On paper, the construction of a multi-billion dam in the town of Pilar looks like the best thing that can happen to this sleepy little town. At the mere mention of a dam, the first thing that comes to the mind of most people is its potential for increased harvests for rice farmers.

Bohol has made claims of becoming the rice granary of Central Visayas and so the presence of a dam is supposed to mean that it will help farmers to maximize their yield. This way, Bohol will not only be able to get closer to its goal but more importantly uplift the livelihood of our farmers. Unfortunately, the Pilar dam has encountered one misfortunate after another. First, the construction took so long that many people started entertaining the thought that it would never be finished.

I do not wish to imply anything but there were stories about alleged irregularities attending the construction of the dam. True or not, it is easy for people to be suspicious considering the very long delay.

When it was finally completed, it would seem like the delay was worth it. If the dam was able to deliver according to expectations, it would have been enough to make people forget about the delay. The sad thing about it is that the Pilar dam has not lived up to its potentials. Contrary to the expectations of many people and especially to the propaganda of those who claim credit for its construction, the dam no longer seems the answer to the problems of our rice farmers.

It is true that the dam is more than enough for the needs of the rice farmers in Pilar. But the original intention was for the dam to serve not only Pilar but also the rice fields in the neighboring towns.

For some reason, the dam has not lived up to its expectations. It has not been able to maximize its potentials. Because of this, the expected help that it can give to the rice fields in the adjacent towns did not materialize.

To rub salt to injury however, it seems that another multi-billion dam in San Miguel has identified the Pilar dam as its water sources. Now, this is much more serious. If the Pilar dam has not been able to reach all the rice fields in its service area, how will it be able to serve another dam?

It is time to take a second and deeper look into the dam projects in the province. If we really want to help our people, we will look for ways to help them at the least cost.

If our agriculture particularly does not increase its production despite the billions of pesos poured into it by the government, it is the farmers who will be the ultimate loser.

Son almost chopped to death his own father
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

SOME people have indeed gone mad as the world also seems heading towards the prophesied End Time.

A son hacked his own father and even ran after him after being refused liquor money.

Suspect Allan Aguaveva, 35, is now facing a case of attempted homicide after he swung a bolo on his father, 67-year old Roberto Aguaveva of Purol 1, barangay Tiptip, this city.

Not contented, the son threatened his father that he would finish him off if he gets near him. For this threat on his life, the father filed the case against his son.

Brothers face murder charge
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

A CASE of murder was filed against two brothers at the provincial prosecutor’s office over the shooting to death of a farmer last month.

Mario Malubay and brother Genesis of barangay Montesuerte, Carmen were allegedly identified by the victim and their names mentioned before he died.

The victim, Gavino Calmba, 38 was walking one night with his wife on their way home when he noticed some persons following them. He told his wife to go ahead and minutes later shots were heard. When the wife came back, he found his husband sprawled with gunshot wounds in his body.

The victim died at the Gov. Celestino Gallares Memorial Hospital in this city.

Worker’s neck slashed, suspect remains at large
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

A WORKER had his neck slashed resulting to death in Cabawan district this city.

The same place was the scene where habal-habal driver Nelson Pacatang was dumped dead on the night of the city’s feastday, May 1.

Victim Edmar Lacea, of Buyog, Balilihan was found dead in a purok center in Cabawan after he stayed behind, to text with his cellphone, on the way home with three other co-workers of the Tinampay mango farm in the same barangay.

The police are now looking for a certain Romel de la Torre who was with the group and slept in the workers’ quarters on the night of the killing. De la Torre disappeared in the morning when the victim was found dead and one of the farm bolo was also missing, a co-worker told police investigators.

The suspect was a former worker of the mango farm and it could not be determined why he went back to the place that night. Police operatives returned negative after they pursued the suspect in barangay Katipunan, Carmen where his last address was known.

Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

As though the scandals hounding the Nursing Licensure Examinations (NLE) are not enough, here comes another one. According to a university dean, the ill-fated NLE was tainted with a leak not only in Luzon but also in Visayas and Mindanao.

Now, this is even more painful to the board exam passers in the south. It means that contrary to the arguments of those who opposed the decision of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for a retake, the leak was wider than initially reported.

It will be recalled that those in the Visayas and Mindanao regions have opposed the retake order, pointing out that the irregularity was discovered only in two subjects and only in Luzon. As logic goes, why punish the innocent along with the guilty.

Unfortunately for them, this latest revelation casts doubts on such claim because it seems that aside from the review centers that were initially dragged into the scandal, there are new names that offered review classes to Visayas and Mindanao reviewees.

This is certainly not saying that most of the examinees in the region benefited from the leak. It means that unless the guilty ones are identified and prosecuted, all the examinees have been placed under a cloud of doubt.

We can only commiserate with the innocent board passers whose only fault, if it can be called as such, was to take the board exams at the same time that the leak was discovered and exposed.

And yet, there are incidents in this world that we all must deal with regardless of whether we want to or not. It is no longer a question of how much suffering the scandal has subjected the innocent ones and certainly no longer an issue on how much they have suffered in its wake.

The point here is for the board passers to realize that there are times in life when the innocent does get punished with the guilty. If they want to move on as they are expected to, the best thing to do will be to get it over and done with.

Now, this may be painful for those who are affected but this is how the cookie crumbles. Except for those who look at the issue with colored glasses, the only way for the affected passers to erase all doubts is to pass the board exams again.

This is certainly an agonizing experience, but it is not the end of the world. They can choose whether to come out of it better or bitter. In case they miss the news, the most successful people in this world did not arrive unscathed.

Indeed, the only closure for this issue is to settle it on the examination table.

JOSE DOMPOR SUMAMPONG
YOUTH DEVELOPMENT THROUGH THE CHURCH AND THEATER ARTS
By Loy Palapos
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

Joesum, as a term of endearment, identifies him with some sectors of the community, especially the youth who, mentioning his name denotes an undefinable closeness devoid of any hierarchical demarcation line. To all age-levels he belongs: an adviser-tutor of the youth, a caring brother to all, a devoted friend to everyone. He belongs to the Church; there’s no question that this is his life’s vocation. But there is another realm he is so comfortable with, for it is a cup for his varied talents...the stage. Reverend Father Jose Sumampong is a man of God who, in his desire for unceasing youth development, dabbles in the theater arts as venue of his artistic inclinations.

His father, Jose Dano Sumampong, Jr., a one-time faculty member of the Bohol School of Arts and Trade (now CVSCAT), is a success story by himself. From his mother, Eusebia Maghuyab-Libot Dompor who was once the Mayor of Loboc, he learned compassion and filial devotion. Both are now blissfully retired in USA. Their inspired parenting brought to the world nine successful offsprings flourishing in various fields with Father Joesum choosing to be God’s shepherd. Cordula is a CPA now based in Seattle, USA. Frigidiano is another priest, with the Congregation of the Passion (CP) in USA. Delfin is a businessman in Tagbilaran City. Publeo is inclined to politics, and is presently a Kagawad in the Municipality of Loboc. Pergentino is an Executive with Biomedics (Phils.) in Parañaque City. Angelita is a School Administrator in Dipolog City. Clarita is a Registered Nurse in Qatar, United Arab Emirates. Theomaria is a Doctor of Medicine based in Tagbilaran City.

Father Joesum was born on February 22, 1951. He attended three schools for his elementary education: Bagumbayan Primary School, Loboc; St. Joseph College (now Holy Spirit School), Tagbilaran City; and Pilar Central Elementary School, because of his acolyte skills. His high school years were spent at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary, Taloto District, in pursuance with a priestly vocation. He attended the same Seminary for his collegiate studies in Philosophy, and went to St. Gabriel Seminary, Koronadal City, South Cotabato, for his Pre-Novitiate. He then transferred to St. Paul of the Cross (Passionate Fathers) Novitiate, Quezon City. He took a year off for his Regency, teaching Philosophy at Divine Word College. He finished his Theology at the University of Santo Tomas (Central Seminary), and later took Graduate Studies at the California State University.

His Diaconate Ordination was made at the St. Joseph Cathedral by Most Rev. Onesimo Gordoncillo, D.D. on May 3, 1980. He was ordained Priest at the St. Peter Church in Loboc on December 20, 1980.

From his ordination he was assigned as a Professor at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary and the following year as its Pre-Collegiate Director. This was followed by varied assignment in some parishes and youth development projects and Charismatic Renewal Programs. In 1988 he was named Youth apostolic Coordinator in the Visayas region by CBCP. From 1990 to 1992 he was designated National Director of Student Catholic Action of the Philippines (SCAP) and Assistant National Director of the National Secretariat for Youth Apostolate (NSYA). A three-year stint as a Guest Priest at the Basilica Minor de Jesus Nazareno in Quiapo, Manila followed. Then he went to St. Juliana Falconieri Parish in Fullerton, California as Associate Pastor, and was Chaplain of Newman’s Club of the California State University. In 1993 he came back to Bohol and was assigned in different Parishes, aside from being Director of various Catholic schools. To him is credited the renovation of Cogon Shrine to its present solemn ambience.

Fr. Sumampong has been one of the very few Priest-Members of the Brother of Christian Businessmen and Professionals (BCBP). He writes a weekly column “Words for All Seasons,” and edits Â"Diocesan Updates” for the Sunday edition of the Bohol Chronicle. He hosts “Maadjong, Good Morning” at DYRD, and edits “Ang Tawag,” a weekly News Bulletin for Gagmay’ng Simbahanong Katilingban Clusters, and is presently the Chaplain of San Roque Chaplaincy in Tiptip District.

Fr. Jose Sumampong has been involved as Chairman, Trainor, Speaker, and Facilitator in countless trainings and seminars all over the country and even abroad, many of them focused on youth development, capped by the Youth Exchange and Immersion Program of the International Young Christian Students-Asia. He is also involved in Lay Formations, all over the country, and was in the RCIA Training, Diocese of Orange, California, USA.

He participated in “Peoples of Other Faith,” sponsored by the International Movement of Catholic Students and International Young Catholic Students held in Bangalore, India in 1989; and “Youth in Asia” held in Hongkong in 1990. The following year he went to Bandung, Indonesia for “Chaplains and Animators Exchange Programme,” and again in Hongkong for the “Asian Council.” That same year he was again in Hongkong for “International Assembly.” In 1996 he was in Sriracha, Thailand for “YCS Southeast Asian Session,” and Los Angeles, USA for “Pastoral Approach: Youth Ministry.

There is another world Fr. Joesum is totally at home in, the theater. Way back in 1980 he was Writer-Director of “Kasaysayan,” a multi-level three-dimensional drama staged at Divine Word College which was restaged 6 years later. From 1981 to 1990 he was Choreographer and Director of various concerts at the IMHS. He even directed the selection of Miss Provincial SK in 1990. In 1982 he was designated Concept-Creator and Director of the 1st Grand Sandugo Reenactment which was praised by Honorable Carlos P. Romulo. He was Producer-Host of “Reach-Out” of DYRD-FM from 1983 to 1990. In 1983 he wrote and directed “Loboc, Kong Minahal,” a dance-drama for the PMI-Loboc Ruby Jubilee Celebrations. He was the Organizing Chairman of the first Sandugo Street Dancing Competition in 1988. In 1991 he was Writer-Director o “Nagmaya,” a dance-drama dedicated for the Golden Jubilee of the Diocese of Tagbilaran.

His other credits include: ACTS I and ACTS II Concert of BCBP (1993 and 1995); Sunday Mass on Cable TV (1994-97); “Simbahan Ko, Tukuron Ko,” or the 10th Anniversary of Birhen sa Barangay Parish, a Cultural Show taped into an album featuring the Cogon Parish Choir (1997); “Panglao, ‘Kong Minahal,” a dance-drama with a video version at San Agustin Academy (1988); “A Salute To The Admiral,” depicting the life of Admiral Tomas Cloma, for the 50th year of PMI-Manila and 25th year of PMI-Bohol; “Friends are Forever,” on the 30th Anniversary of Immaculate High School of Baclayon; “Teatro Trinitatis” and “Teatro Sakayanon.” He is presently the Chairperson of the Drama Group of the Provincial Council for Culture and the Arts, and did a sterling job coordinating the Youth Activities of TBTK.

As the Parish Priest of Songculan, Dauis he has brought with him years of varied experiences in his pastoral vocation. The first time I met him was at DWC where he was on his regency and was teaching Philosophy. As Adviser of The Word, the school’s official publication, I knew of an intelligent and beautiful girl who was linked to him. He could have made a detour and become a family man. But he chose the road to Godliness, a decision he has no regret whatsoever. Today he has his Church, he has his theater, and the Youth look up to him as an inspiration.

Advisory over selling spurious products
DTI warns public on door-to-door promo
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

PROTECTING unsuspecting consumers from getting sub-par products in the light of the resurgence of persistent peddlers in the rural areas, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) advises: ask for their home solicitation permits from the DTI.

The often pitiful complaints of consumers getting the lousy end of deals in these peddling activities have often been the subject of radio complaints in Bohol stations, most of them dealing with defective products and furnishings or lousy services.

Guesting the weekly Kapihan sa PIA on the occasion of the Consumer Welfare and Protection Month in October, DTI Provincial Director Nanette Arbon and consumer division chief Joe Hibaya discussed in the hour-long radio program the basic consumer rights and responsibilities in the midst of mass produced goods, some of below quality standards riding on the markets.

The Kapihan on the same day also coincided with a DTI and City Mayor Dan Lim organized task force raid on an establishment at the Bohol Quality Mall. It was the second one at the mall, both of which have been in the receiving end of complaints filed by discontented consumers.

Vending and peddling activities can only have the green light after the proponents have secured the necessary home solicitation permits from the DTI, explains Arbon to radio listeners across the province.

The permit would then contain the identified area and coverage, the duration of the activity, which should only be within office hours so the buyers can verify with DTI and the permit also contains the personnel of the company involved in the activity, clarifies Hibaya.

Absent that, at least they should have a valid barangay permit issued for them, Hibaya added assuring listeners that the DTI consumer protection network with the barangays have been developed enough to be reliable.

The consumers have the right to safety, Hibaya points out and that should also allow them to seek for the right information about the product they are going to buy then they choose the product with informed decision, Hibaya pointed.

For imported products, DTI said consumers should look for the genuine International Clearance Certificate (ICC) marks. For local manufactured goods, they should at least bear the Philippine Products Standard to sport the PS mark, hinted the DTI authorities.

While people would still unwittingly go for the low-priced often sacrificing quality, at least they have been duly informed through the right labels of the products they get. Succeding complaints, Hibaya said may be coursed through the local DTI but the standard procedure is to go through the store’s consumer welfare desks (CWDs) for facilitation of action. (rachiu/PIA)

Call for media restraint in kids’ crimes reporting
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

SOCIAL workers and children’s rights advocates jointly call the media to exercise restraint in reporting cases of children in conflict with the law (CICL) at the weekly Kapihan sa PIA last week.

“Crime offenders as they are, the state still has the responsibility to protect the best interests of the child through measures ensuring the observance of international standards of child protection, right to assistance, proper care and nutrition and special protection from all forms of neglect, abuse, cruelty, exploitation and other conditions prejudicial to their development,” both sectors press.

“With this in mind, reporting cases involving CICL should be consistent with the promotion of the child’s dignity and worth, accounting the child’s age and desirability of promoting his reintegration,” Lawnet volunteer lawyer Gertrude Biliran urges.

The law also says the state shall ensure that children are dealt with appropriately by providing them a variety of disposition measures: care, guidance and supervision orders, counseling, probation, foster care, education and vocational training programs and other alternatives to institutional care, the least of them is detention.

“Victims of circumstances and neglect, some children coming from broken if not impoverished families have started to adopt the life in a mad rat scramble, some literally clawing to get food to fill their stomachs. This situation would sound unfair if we throw them into the jails for committing a crime the society and their families could ably help to rehabilitate them, said social workers in a random telephone survey conducted by PIA. (rachiu/PIA)

Central Visayas electric coops to help rehabilitate typhoon-ravaged areas
By: BRUCE ERIC GIDEON T. ZABALA
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

TYPHOON “Milenyo” wrought havoc to the country and the loss of life and property was quite high. Add to it the present economic crunch which is in itself like the storm, pinning down and blowing the Filipinos away.

Despite life’s harness the Pinoys still manage to make it through specially if the Bayanihan spirit spreads to neighbors and causes them to perform acts of generosity.

A fine example to this was felt during the 8th National Cooperative Summit held at Puerto Princesa, Palawan last week.

In a phone patch with PGMA and BPRMO Chief Antonieto “Boy” Pernia at the opening program, he mentioned that as a gesture of cooperation the entire Central Visayas Electric cooperatives created a team to go visit and assess the extent of damage to the power facilities and assist in the rehabilitation of the ravaged areas to facilitate resumption of operations and distribution of power.

Through this undertaking, it was hoped that these devastated areas will recuperate faster and be able to stand again and return with their normal daily grind.

Just as what happened in the Province of Cebu during the early 90’s when also a devastating typhoon named “RUPING” wrought havoc on the province, destroying homes, uprooting not only trees but also the power lines, But when the “bayanihan spirit” rose into each and every neighboring provinces, the inflow of assistance (in kind as well as technical services and expertise) Cebu Province miraculously came back to life faster than expected with all power lines restored and lights were on in every single residence in record time of just three months.

The 8th National Cooperative Summit was held from October 4-6.

The province of Bohol was represented by the delegation of the Bohol Cooperative Development Council (PCDC) headed by Pernia who is also currently the Vice Chair of PCDC council.

Durano OKs 7 “new” Bohol road projects, friendship hi-way
Published on October 8, 2006 - The Bohol Standard Newspaper

TOURISM Sec. Joseph Ace Durano Wednesday endorsed to the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) seven “new” priority Bohol road and bridge projects â€" bringing them still another step closer to realization.

The approval came during the Infrastructure Summit initiated by the PMS at the Dusit Hotel in Makati City . Durano is President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s Cabinet Officer for the Central Philippines Super Region.

Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado practically brought to the summit his “wish list” â€" the Bohol Circumferential Road Improvement Project Phase 3 (BCRIP 3), the Loay Interior Road (LIR) to Trinidad, the Tubigon to Jagna Port-to-Port Highway, the LIR (Junction Dat-an) Carmen-Sierra Bullones-Pilar-Alicia Road, two Panglao Island Tourism Estate (PITE) Road Networks and the Trans-Visayas Friendship Bridges Program.

He also submitted the same list to Sec. Arthur Yap, PMS Director General and chief for Infra Monitoring.

New in the sense that they have yet to be implemented, Aumentado however said the projects are not new ideas.

“Together with the Panglao Bohol International Airport Development Project [PBIADP], these road projects and the Friendship Bridges linking five Visayas islands are already in the Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan [MTPDP] for 2004 to 2010,” he explained.

They were also presented last July in Malacañang during the President’s PowerPoint Presentation-backed State of the Nation Address (SONA) that the governor attended. In his letters to Durano and Yap, Aumentado said Bohol is poised to develop the Anda Peninsula , which will be traversed by BCRIP 3, as the province’s next tourism destination. The area has rich eco-cultural heritage potentials on top of its white sandy beaches and historical cultural endowments, he said.

The feasibility study for BCRIP 3 is already complete â€" prepared pro bono by the Pacific Consultants International (PCI). The same firm also conducted the feasibility studies for BCRIP 1 and 2.

The study has been submitted to the Regional Development Council (RDC) for endorsement to the National Economic and Development Authority-Infrastructure Coordinating Committee (NEDA-ICC) Technical Board.

Barangays start getting Capitol financial aid
Published on October 8, 2006 - Bohol Standard

GOV. Erico Aumentado has started distributing this year’s edition of the P5,000 provincial aid to barangays.

BARANGAY captains in Balilihan town who were among the first to receive the checks said they intended to use the amount to renovate a day care center, add to funds for the on-going construction of a barangay hall, among others.

Some had to convene their respective councils yet to come up with a collective decision on how to spend the aid.

The governor distributed the checks to the town’s 31 barangays the day before its 178th Foundation Day celebration.

He also inaugurated that day the wet section of the town’s public market. The two rows of well-ventilated, well-illuminated white-tiled tables with a faucet for every stall were built with a P2-million aid from the provincial government’s calamity reserve fund after the old market got burned.

Mayor Dominisio Chatto, former mayor and now Rep. Edgar Chatto and his mother, Vice Mayor Victoria Chatto led local officials and barangay folk in thanking Aumentado for the aid and the re-operationalization of the wet market section.

Also happy recipients of P5,000 checks that day were the 35 barangays of Valencia town. Mayor Henrietta Lim-Gan and former mayor turned Provincial Board member Concepcion Lim relayed their constituents’ thanks to the governor.

San Miguel town’s turn came the following day during the launching in Barangay Bugang of the P37.6-million Livelihood Integrated for Food and Family Enhancement (LIFFE) project in partnership with Heifer Project International-Philippines.

Aside from distributing carabaos and goats, the governor, assisted by Mayor Silvino Evangelista also gave P5,000-checks to the town’s 18 barangays.

The turns of Talibon and Ubay towns came last Sunday. Mayor Juanario Item led his constituents from 25 barangays including islanders in thanking the governor for the checks.

Mayor Eutiquio Bernales also thanked him for making each of his 44 barangays P5,000 richer.

Joseph Lemuel Camacho, Aumentado’s executive assistant for barangay affairs said up next in the distribution line are Getafe, Loay and Lila, Catigbian and San Isidro.

Camacho and his team are still synchronizing the schedules of the governor, the mayor and the village chiefs for the next batches.

Police file charges against 4 suspects
Published on October 8, 2006 - Bohol Standard

TWENTY-seven days after receiving the order to seal the case against the assassins of erstwhile Hugpong sa Mag-uumang Bol-anon (Humabol) Chairman and Bohol Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) Chairman Victor Olayvar, the task force assigned to handle the case filed murder charges against 3 notorious police characters and another case of accessory to murder to an “alleged” former member of the communist’s New People’s Army.

The hitch in the move is that three of the suspects could not be determined where they are, or if they are still alive. They are known police characters in hiding, long wanted for string of criminal cases and have warrants for their arrest involving rape, murder and homicide.

The suspects were identified as brothers Marlou and Virgo Betasa of San Carlos, Danao, Mel Logronio of Buenavista and Roldan Torres, owner of the house where the slain Bayan leader stayed overnight.

Militant organizations maintained that Olayvar is among those victims in the political killings allegedly perpetrated by the military.

The Commission on Human Rights also said it has not yet concluded its own investigation looking closely into the allegations of militants here who claimed six of their compatriots were already liquidated the same manner as Olayvar’s murder.

VENDETTA

After poring over “unreliable sworn accounts” from witnesses, adulterated evidence and discordant leads fed to investigators, police came out with a motive: vendetta. Key witness, 46 year old Adela Membrillos from Buenavista and residing in San Carlos, Danao said that in 1991, a brother of the Betasas, named Joseph, was summarily executed by the members of the NPAs for engaging in notorious activities contrary to revolutionary laws.

The brothers of the slain Joseph, identified as Marlou and Virgo soon alleged that their brother’s death was a handiwork of the Humabol members who recommended for Joseph’s execution.

Membrillos added that Humabol members and their families became targets of harassments and intimidation by the Betasas shortly before they escaped to Mindanao in 2003.

In 2004, and from their Mindanao sortie, the Betasas came home with unidentified companions and the intimidations and harassment started again, the 46 year old Humabol organizer and surrenderee stated.

“It started by poking their firearms to five persons in separate instances during the day”, Membrillos recalled in her signed affidavit.

One such victim, Alfredo Bingas burned his neck when Virgo Betasa accordingly fired his gun and pressed the hot barrel into his neck for being accused of responsible in killing their brother.

A certain Antonio Bingas Jr. also suffered multiple bullet wounds when Virgo Betasa, aided by a certain Jesryl Bautista and Crisanto Suello accosted the farmers’ group members. Sangguniang Kabataan Chairman Jonathan Avelino was also hit on that attack.

“On that particular incident, Virgo shouted in public that it was their initial hit and would be followed to eliminate the members…being responsible for the death of their brother,” Membrillos said.

With what she heard that night, she accordingly reported to Humabol office so members would not put down their guards.

In fact, until now, the Betasa brothers still roam around with armed companions that frighten the barangay residents because of their continuous threats, Membrillos stated.

THE SUSPECTS

Unconfirmed reports said that the Betasas run to Mindanao when their activities in Danao have made them NPA targets.

In Mindanao, the duo organized a gun for hire organization along with shadowy characters. They accordingly came back in 2004.

Suspect Virgo Betasa owns pending arrest warrants for frustrated murder issued by Regional Trial Court Branch 52 Judge Irma Zita Masamayor dated January 24, 2006 and another by Municipal Circuit Trial Court Judge Avelino Puracan last September 12, 2005. His brother Marlou Betasa has another pending arrest warrant for a similar case issued by Judge Masamayor in January of 2006. The other suspect, Neil Logronio is also wanted for rape and has another pending arrest warrant issued by Judge Masamayor in June 1997.

All three suspects have remained at large while police have in their custody Roldan Torres for being an accessory to the Olayvar slay crime last September 7 in Barangay Cantubod in Danao.

CASE FILED
Police provincial director, PSsupt. Arturo Evangelista forwarded the murder complaints against brothers Marlou and Virgo Betasa and Neil Logronio as well as accessory to murder against Roldan Torres to Assistant Provincial prosecutor Macario Delusa October 4.

Earlier, crime witnesses aided cartographers in rendering the sketches of the three assassins who patiently waited for the victim to cross the bridge on that fateful morning.

Murder witness Olayvar Joselito Ayag, the one who drove the day he died, positively identified the suspects and in a supplemental affidavit, bared that he saw the same persons the night before Olayvar died, them pretending to be customers in Torres’ videoke.

Ayag also personally identified the Torres’ red Krypton motorcycle now with fixed brakelight cover as one of the two escape vehicles. In earlier affidavit, he said the motorcycle has broken tail lights.

Independent news sources also tell that Roldan Torres initially lived in a house owned by the Betasas, a fact that supports the claim that the Betasas rely on Torres for information, him being their local contact.

While some Danao witnesses, were not able to identify the suspects in their affidavits, independent fact finding teams believe that inconsistencies in the witness statements could be fed by fear, them knowing that the crime involved notorious local guys.

The government fact-finding team noted that the only reason why the military in the nearby detachment did not accost the waylaying suspects is because they were local boys who could never rouse interest.

Human rights group Karapatan, in their fact-finding mission questioned the military in the detachment for failure to react with the “new faces in the area” before the crime. With this, they presumed the military has a hand in the crime.

With the charges, Bayan Muna Provincial Coordinator John Ruiz III insists in a text statement that the suspects are mere fall guys, pointing to the fact that witnesses should have identified the Betasa brothers, in their notoriety.

CASE REFERRED
Despite the development, Governor Erico Aumentado has endorsed all the Olayvar murder documents to the government initiated Melo Commission Monday.

President Gloria Macapagal arroyo appointed the Melo Commission, aided by international human rights observers to conduct investigations and establish validity of the militant propaganda that she has a hand in the systematic neutralization of vocal critics against her Administration.

With the pendency of the case filed in court, the Melo Commission may also initiate their own investigations to finally settle the matter. (With reports: Rey Anthony Chiu)

CARP Extension beyond 2008
By: Merly D. Bantugan, PIO-Bohol
Published on Oct 8, 2006 - Bohol Standard

WANTING to sustain the momentum of agricultural activity that has begun to alter the socio-economic landscape in the country sides, the strong Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) is urgently asking Congress to adopt legislation extending and strengthening the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) beyond 2008.

ULAP Chairman and Bohol Governor Erico Aumentado along with Executive Vice President Ramon Guico Jr. signed resolution no. 2006-038 during the 4th ULAP general assembly last September 25, 2006, in Manila.

The petition to urge Congress to adopt a pro-CARP extension legislation came while Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) authorities under Secretary Nasser Pangandaman, are still immersed in feverish land acquisition and distribution programs to solidly anchor the government’s poverty reduction initiatives. This also came amidst the timetable that the full CARP implementation needs to be implemented up to 2008.

Through CARP, DAR has said that the government’s dream of reducing poverty gains a critical foothold through CARP generated livelihood activities, employment as well as cemented local economy.

According to the ULAP resolution, the move extending CARP to 2008 ensures fair resolution of agrarian cases, maximizes sustainable agriculture and rural enterprise development, promote social infrastructure and local capability building initiatives.

It may be recalled that the Philippines pitched into institutionalized CARP when it inserted the move in the 1987 constitution. Likewise, it further bolstered the government initiative with the CARP law of 1988 and Republic Act 8532, which further strengthened the government’s leading program for social justice.

Since then, CARP has sought to uphold social justice for the rural poor by improving their socio-economic conditions while tilling rural areas for sustainable agricultural development. It does by ensuring land tenure securities for the landless farm workers while promoting agrarian justice.

Furthermore, through CARP, the government hoped to increase productivity, which would suspend farmers into a place where they would merit the claim as the backbones of the country’s economy.

As this developed, Gov. Aumentado, who consequently heads the League of Provinces of the Philippines also shared that he would goad the league to do a similar move so provinces may also benefit from an extended and strengthened CARP.

Capitol Aircon Purchase Controversy
Published on October 8, 2006 - Bohol Standard

With the final over-all cost of the controversial Capitol air-conditioning project for the Bohol Cultural Center now partially accounted, those who were offered as “sacrificial lambs” in a frantic effort to cleanse the graft tag in government procurements, found themselves vindicated.

The total cost of the project had overshot the original program of work estimated cost that was earlier dubbed as anomalous and grossly overpriced.

Records from the General Services Office (GSO) revealed that the cost had reached a total of P3,757,669.00, higher than the last revised amount of P3,748,000.00.

The breakdown of the cost listed: air-con units P2,075,940 (Koppel-Feeders), air-con installation P281,000 (Galos RAC), electrical materials (Herbert Malmis) P996,898, drill bits P10,173, additional electrical materials P283,958, and labor for electrical work (by administration) P108,700.

This does not include the cost for the additional power service lines and purchase of transformers to carry a bigger electricity load required by the power provider Bohol Light Co, Inc. estimated at P1.3-M.

GSO said this record is still to be obtained from the accounting office.

The total cost has now ballooned into P5-M which negates what was earlier announced as “savings”; this despite cost revisions were made, local suppliers banned, scheduled biddings cancelled and numerous resolutions of the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) were repeatedly amended.

An influential group reportedly influenced the actions of BAC.

BIGGEST CASUALTY
The biggest casualty in the air-con project controversy was the eventful transfer of GSO chief Engr. Edwin Vallejos to the provincial engineering office.

Some members of the BAC were also stripped of their functions and reshuffled.

The public pronouncements of Capitol Legal Officer Atty. Handel Lagunay that a team will be created “to dig deeper into the issue “also turned out all sound, no fury”.

The controversy simply fizzled to a natural death, Capitol observers said.

In an earlier interview, the relieved General Services Office chief said he would wish for the release of the probe’s finding on the alleged over-pricing attempt in the Capitol air-con buy to clear the issue and to vindicate the innocent.

Vallejos, however, said he harbors no ill-feeling resulting from his transfer from the GSO top post to the provincial engineer’s office as acting head.

“It was my decision as I felt the effects of unfounded reports of alleged corruptions involving my office already hurting my family. I personally requested the Governor that I be transferred to another office,” Vallejos said.

REFORMS
Vallejos told the Bohol Standard that corruption raps directed against his office is understandable since many still does not know how the new law R.A. 9184, known as the Government Reformed Procurement Act, has changed the set-up and the mode of purchasing government supplies and services.

His name and signature no longer appears in the approval of the purchase request and it is the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) that now exercises the final authority to award or even reject bids in a procurement process, the erstwhile GSO chief explained.

Vallejos troubles begun when stories were circulated that the estimated P4.7-million air-con project for the Bohol Cultural Center is already a “done deal” with a favored local supplier.

The reports came at a time when Aumentado was out of the country, joining the team of Pres. Arroyo in a trip to Europe.

The done deal was allegedly entered into with local supplier, Sammy’s Air-conditioning owned by Engr. Prex Tumabang, in collusion with GSO officials.

Seen by many as a “knee-jerk” reaction, the BAC committee, based only on hearsay and with no probative value, cancelled the scheduled bidding for 18 air-conditioning units that was supposed to be participated by local dealers.

Opting for a limited source bidding, BAC offered the aircon units purchase exclusively for Manila-based suppliers, eventually won by Feeders-Koppel at a bid price of P2.03-million for 18 air-conditioning units of Ten (10) 10TR (toner) and Eight ( units for 7.5TR (toner)) through negotiated purchase..

Popular impression now had become real as predicted earlier by experts in the air-conditioning business.

“In the end, the total cost would amount more than what was earlier suspected as overly overpriced project estimate,” they said.

unsa gyud kaha to. mysterious. katuohan-dili pero nahitabo man.

Our own Standard
By Atty. Alexander "Aleckoy" Lim
September 3, 2006 - Bohol Standard

In this issue, the Bohol Standard is celebrating its second year of existence. It means that there are enough people who want it to live by patronizing it for the past two years. To all of them, we offer our gratitude from the bottom of our hearts.

The celebration is not exactly without its share of controversy. The reason of course is the claim being made by people who were once our friends. It is one thing to make a claim and another to prove it. The burden of proof now lies on them on how long they can pretend that they will not sink again like the first time.

Having said that, allow me to move on to more pleasant things. There have been enough blessings in the past two years to thank God for. They should not be forgotten because they are part of the history of the Standard and in our lives.

I remember the most important decision that we had to make during our maiden issue. The conflict in schedule prevented our Editor-in-Chief from being with the paper in its very first issue because he had to take the bar exams.

Koykoy insisted that we come out with the first issue even without him physically. He was proven right because the Standard has not missed a single issue since then and he passed the bar exam on his first try.

In the following year, his younger sister Alissa joined us in the roster of attorneys and the Trabajo-Lim Law Clinic when she passed the bar exam like her brother, on her first try.

Although there seems to be little connection between my children becoming full-fledge lawyers and the Standard’s first two years, we cannot prevent that. During this time, the Standard faced many challenges including the one I mentioned in passing earlier. The Standard has become the tool for people who were angry with me in connection with the legal assistance I provide as a lawyer.

I consider it a blessing in disguise because the Standard has managed to survive in spite of the many people working to put it down. We are aware of this so we are doing our best to stay afloat.

On the other hand, the Trabajo-Lim Law Clinic has also experienced a bumper year in the legal practice. The addition of two new, young and motivated partners has given us new energy to deal with the many cases that it is handling.

In spite of the available legal assistance, the Standard has not adopted a reckless type of reporting that would invite libel cases. This is not because we are afraid but because we try to be fair with people as much as possible.

We are trying to set our own Standard of reporting. It is an identity that we will try to preserve as the Standard prepares to face its third year of service to the Boholanos.

The Greatest Strength
By Atty. Aleck Francis Lim
Published on Sept. 3, 2006 - Bohol Standard

Media practitioners can now start seeing light after a long travail in a dark tunnel.

A House Bill, “predicted to lessen the use of libel suits to harass media by requiring charges to be filed at the regional trial court of the province or city where the journalist, publication or broadcast holds its principal office,” is already on its way to the Senate for deliberation.

For most of the people, this development may appear insignificant, but for us who are in the mission of exposing the workings of darkness so the light of truth can shine on our community, this report is a lovely respite.

Cebu Representative Raul Del Mar, who authored the bill, must be commended for his sensitivity to the plight of media practitioners.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has expressed its elation over the passage of the bill.

IFJ has been alarmed over the skyrocketing number of defamation charges filed by public or private individuals against journalists so they keep their pen sleeping and their mouth shut.

In a statement, IFJ president Christopher Warren said that “criminal defamation charges are getting out of control in the Philippines.”

Aside from the fact that slaughtering of our comrades has been getting out of control, the other setback of being in the media, the possibility of being haunted by libel for life, has also gone haywire.

And for a democratic society like ours, this condition threatens our freedom of speech and it threatens the propagation of truth.

What a huge headache for a journalist or mediaman for that matter when he has to travel to a distant city just to answer a libel suit. With this bill filed by Del Mar, this travel requirement can now be eliminated.

However, Del Mar’s bill is not a guarantee that we mediamen have a perpetual rest from useless libel suits. Those who hate truth can still unleash their venom until a mediaman chokes to a deathly exhaustion of his profession.

Again, for most of the citizens of our country, they may not care of the implication of the rising number of libel cases against journalists and the ascending statistics of our comrades being sent to grave.

But let me tell you this, if our country becomes an inhabitable place for journalists, you will see our society getting worse and worse everyday.

You will see more blatant corruption in the bureaucracies. You will see more evils mutating from one form to another.

One reason why corruption is sometimes kept at bay is that those who perpetrate it are afraid of being put in bad light. Those who sponsor ghostly deals are still afraid of being exposed.

The media still has a considerable power to push back the spread of fraudulent acts.

We at the Bohol Standard are ready for anything. We do not know who may blink first and attempt to harass the ideals we believe in. We keep our commitment to our readers that we will only serve the truth and the public interest no matter what the cost is.

While we welcome Del Mar’s bill and appreciate his effort, we will exert our own efforts so that we can always serve the public even when we are challenged by libel or any form of harassment.

Having two lawyers in this paper may be a strength so that we can be shielded from the flying arrow of a libel suit but our greatest strength is found in our commitment to stick to truth.

Nothing else.

Debt Threats
By Fred C. Amora
Published on September 3, 2006 - Bohol Standard

Am really sorry for the mess-up last Sunday resulting to the deletion of the jump (continuation) of my column about the Fourth Angel.

Well anyway, it could be a blessing in disguise for in that missing part I had “exposed” the identity of the guy. He was literally saved by the bell.

But ironically, the blessing turned out, not for him but for me. He text after reading my incomplete column saying he was sure I was referring to him when in the first portion I stated “Pendejo ning atong amigo”.

Meaning he knows who he is. Smart jod!

His text said “suerte ka kay wa matiwas imong colum kay kon migawas pa ako ngalan natiwas na sad unta ka.”

That was a threat! The guy was indeed very angry and he meant what he said, “matiwas” as in “I’m finished!”

I really had sleepless night the past week. I angered a friend and he is threatening me.

When I told another friend about my threat, before I could finish my story he seriously admonished me “do peligro jod tinuod kay naay daghan Vigilantes ug mga hired killer karon.”

So I had to keep my mouth shut. I did not care to explain further.

What this other friend failed to understand was the threat is actually not about death or being assassinated. My biggest fear actually is: this Pendejo friend owns a lending firm. He sent me a Demand Letter the other day saying “Dili na ta amigo. Maningil nako sa imong utang nga dugay na kaayo.”

Wow “debt threat” diay!

* * * * *
Talking about threats, I was told I should indeed be careful these days.

Somebody told me Police Provincial Director Arturo Evangelista was “galit na galit sa akin” because of my banner stories in the newspaper about his impending relief.

I did receive a very threatening text from him!

If it was meant to scare me, he was wrong. He also blundered in using a cell number that was identified in my phonebook.

Maybe PD Evangelista forgot he gave me that “confidential number” of his.

What worries me, however, is the unfolding event that he might indeed be transferred outside Bohol.

If there is a hearing on his merits and performance, I would volunteer to be his counsel, pro bono. I will take the cudgels of defending this gentleman.

PD Evangelista is just about ten months in office and he isn’t Superman to be able to round off the bad guys in just a flip of his cape.

Nobody seems to have noticed that in his first six months (going to the 1st Quarter 2006) Evangelista made a remarkable performance of having the highest crime solution rate in the whole Central Visayas for that period.

Out of 898 cases, his command solved 833 of them as recorded in data from Regional Intelligence and Investigation Division (RIID-7).

It is unprecedented for someone very new since this is the first assignment for Evangelista as provincial commander being from the PNP Aviation Security Group before.

“Nasuko lang tingali ang mga mayor kay gi-kuwestiyon ang pag gamit nila sa intelligence fund.”

I think Evangelista has raised a question never asked before.

If he was probably given the support, he could have performed far well than what he had accomplished in that sterling 1st Quarter 2006 high crime solution rate.

Why don’t the mayors tell instead and make known to the public how they utilized these huge intelligence funds that are not even subjected to government auditing?

The people deserve to know for intel-funds are from people’s taxes, therefore public funds.

If mayors treat these intel-funds as “pocket monies”, then transferring Evangelista won’t make any difference!

Lesson for Today: Recite the Our Father everyday. “… Thy Will be done here on Earth as it is in Heaven.”

Uniquely Filipino
By Atty. Gee Biliran
Published on Sept 3, 2006 - The Bohol Standard

When I attended an international human rights seminar in Hawaii in the year 2000, the participants who had never been to the Philippines were shocked to know that Filipinos speak different regional languages. I was the only Filipino delegate then and I had the monopoly (and the challenge) of sharing with them the unique qualities of the Philippines and its people. As simply as possible, I explained to them that owing to our country’s being an archipelago or a group of islands, each region has its own peculiar language, culture and trait (according to language experts and sociologists, what we call “dialects” are actually “languages” because they are independent of each other).

I explained to the awe-struck participants that we have as many languages are there are regions â€" we have the Cebuano language, the Tagalog language, the Waray language, the Ilocano language, etc…. I further arduously elucidated that we have a supposedly common “Filipino” language formally taught in school, which is the Tagalog language adulterated with the English language (or is it the other way around?) â€" but which is actually not the most widely spoken language in the country.

I had the time of my life as I told them that I was a linguist because I spoke Cebuano, Tagalog, “Filipino”, and English.

They found it incomprehensible that while I spoke Cebuano, I neither understood nor spoke the other regional languages, and for me to communicate to a Filipino of another region, we would have to speak Tagalog or English for us to understand each other, the latter being preferred.

What else is uniquely Filipino?

One time, my family was watching a Filipino movie with a foreign visitor. I remember it was the scene of the young Gretchen Baretto crying over a dying person. Expecting to hear the moviegoers’ sniffle, the foreigner was shocked to hear their laughter instead. We had to explain to him that as a coping mechanism, Filipinos tend to cover up an embarrassment or sadness by laughing. That is why we rarely have suicides or serial killings, we proudly pointed out. Or perhaps, I later wondered, had it something to do with the lack of acting prowess of the supposed actress?

Filipinos are also hospitable to a fault wherever they are in the globe. Don’t we offer the best bedroom to our visitors, even if it means having to sleep on the sofa?

When I attended a human rights seminar in Strasbourg, France in 2002, I extended my stay and was privileged to spend a week with a Filipina/Ilongga named Jeanette, her French husband Jeanne Marie Haberkorn and son Kevin. Much to my embarrassment, Jeanette insisted that I sleep in the master’s bedroom, while she slept in her son’s room and her good husband, in the sala!

Boholanos are no exception. Carving our own place in history, we proudly lay our claim to the first international treaty, the blood compact between Datu Sikatuna and Legaspi. The boost in our tourism is attributable not only to our rich natural resources but also to the hospitality of the Boholanos. Thus, we attract local and foreign tourists, some of whom even decide to live here permanently.

Such decision is highly welcome to our government because it could easily be translated into more dollar earnings for our coffers. It is welcome to the local community because the slightest indication of affluence is claimed as reflective of the affluence of the community. It is welcome to the barangay officials because financial contributions for some projects are received now and then. It is welcome to parents because their children are invited to the new resident’s house and return home with food and money.

Anything that would threaten this comfortable arrangement is highly denounced, and the new resident is defended at all cost. Never mind if the new resident is an escaped convict. Never mind if the community’s children and women are abused. Never mind if the locals become second class citizens in their own land. What is important is that the dollars are coming in. Tourism always has its social costs, they would argue, and such costs, they are willing to take.

Sadly, we forget that we, too, had a Dagohoy. We forget that we fought the longest revolt in the country. We forget that we refused to surrender our identity, our integrity, our self-respect and our pride for thirty pieces of silver.

What has brought us to the level where we eat up our pride as fast as we eat up the apples and hamburgers brought by our children from the new resident’s house?

Why are we willing to throw our children into the lion’s den for some fleeting moment of gastronomic satisfaction which is inevitably convertible into mere organic matter?

Before it’s too late, let us look into ourselves and rethink where we are leading our children. What values are we teaching them? Is poverty an excuse for such a debasement? Why is it that before this new resident came, we were content with living simple lives? We fed our children with simple but nutritious food. We sent them to school. We taught them the value of work, honesty and self-respect. Where have all these values gone?

What has become of us? Can we still hold our head up and proudly declare that we are uniquely Filipino?

Bangs in Banks
By Atty. Chic Baluma
September 3, 2006, The Bohol Standard

Dear fellow Boholanos, how do you choose your bank?

Of course, its general standing in the banking community, whether it is No. 1 in liquidity of assets, a minimum of liabilities, its performance report which is periodically reported, if you can have a grasp and can understand, unless financially massaged counts.

But, just to be practical how to make a choice for your bank, what will you consider?

When the manager or any of its top-ranking official gambles, a regular icon in the cockpit, certified habitué in the mahjong joints, a daily double player in the mid-day and evening Lotto game, beware!

When the manager or his/her subordinates is in the vicious circle- a womanizer, one-lady with good manners but with bad habits, a flirt to the machos, or in a macho to macho matching sidestrips, beware!

When the manager or any of its top-rank employees himself is in the money market, is in the lending business through a dummy or has an extra-business in addition to his bank employment, beware!

When the manager or his/her subordinates flashes the latest models of the vehicles, the fashion jewelries, the sporty vehicles, has that palatial homes or mansions, beware!

When the manager or any of his/her staff does frequent travels abroad, the vacation trips, beware!

If the public can demand from government officials a lifestyle check, the bank depositors are also entitled to a lifestyle check on the bankers.

There ought to be a pubic disclosure of financial statements, assets and liabilities of bankers. Who knows that the latest van acquired by a top-rank official of your bank is from you, the depositor’s money deposited in the bank?

It might be an exaggeration to claim that a bank manager receives something like P75,000 to P100,000 monthly net pay. If the guess is right, well and good. But how about the middle managers, the rank and file? It could be around P30,000 to P50,000 a month. If the guess is still right, still well and good! But what is the monthly pay with the corresponding vanity and standards to cope to look and feel like one who is a banker? For all you know, our friends in the banking circles may pardon us, the tellers of banks in Makati, Quezon City and in Metro Manila doubles as escorts for Mr. Big Shot, Mr. Big Time Mr. DOM if not are also guest relations ornaments (GRO’s) during the night, the men tellers are also in gay bars, macho clubs waiting for the lousy, old merry widows and femme fatale of yesteryears! The situation only illustrates one thing that in the banking community, the pay has to be augmented just like our OCW nurses in the United States who work in more than one hospitals to earn more.

Can a depositor demand from a bank damages he suffers from the actuations, acts of negligence of its agents?

The banks are engaged in a business impressed with public interest and it is its duty to protect in return its many clients and depositors who transact business with it. Whatever rhetorics bank management may interpose, it cannot validly extricate itself from the wrongdoings of the men the management has employed to transact with its clients.

Banks are liable to third persons where the representation is made in the course of its business by an agent acting within the general scope of his authority even though the agent is secretly abusing his authority and attempting to perpetuate a fraud or has defrauded bank clients or some other persons for his own personal benefit.

The banking business does not begin and end with it receiving the deposit, granting interests to the money deposited and allowing the withdrawals from the deposits of its clients. The public interest it has vowed to keep are stated in no mean terms in its purposes and objectives, in its articles of incorporation. Banking institutions has the obligation to see to it that all funds invested with it are properly accounted for and duly recorded in its ledgers. A bank is liable for the wrongful acts of its officers done in the interests of the bank or in the course of the dealings of its personnel in the discharge of their banking duties. A depositor must be on watch of entries in the passbook which are not in its computers. A typewritten entry in the passbooks are suspicious.

When your bank had caused you mental anguish, anxiety, moral shock, physical suffering, wounded feelings or similar injuries because the money you entrusted to it, your hard earned money dwindled even you have not done any transaction to cause such diminishing effect, then as a depositor, one has the right of action. The degree of diligence required from banking institutions is more than that of a good father of a family. The fiduciary nature of the relation between a bank and its depositors require the banks its bounden duty to treat the accounts of its clients with its highest degree of care. Any bank short of this duty, its banking days become numbered. Shortly, the depositors will run to the bank, withdraw their deposits, close their accounts, create a bank run and cause a bank holiday. Whether a depositor’s account consists only of a few hundred pesos or of million pesos, the depositors expect the banks and the bankers to be men of trust and honesty and not demi-gods, treating the depositors and their money deposits with fidelity, with meticulous care. Short of this, the depositors can run, depositors run to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas which is charged with the supervision over the operations of banks and exercise over them their regulatory powers. Mr. Depositors, is it Run Samson Run?

By Paul Borja
Published on September 3, 2006 - Bohol Standard

In his book “The Truth About Coconut Oil: The Drugstore in a Bottle,” Dr. Conrado S. Dayrit explains that attacks by American food oil industry against coconut oil are based on a number of claims, all of which have been proven false by scientific and medical researches. Among these claims: coconut oil is rich in cholesterol (truth: it has no cholesterol); coco oil is like animal fats â€" saturated (truth: both are indeed saturated but unlike animal fats, which have long chain fatty acids (LCFA), coco oil contains medium chain fatty acids (MCFA), which actually possess important nutritional and medical applications); coco oil increases cholesterol levels and causes heart disease (truth: people who consume large amounts of coco oil, such as Polynesians, Sri Lankans, Indians, and Bicolanos, have generally low levels of cholesterol and rarely develop heart diseases); and, polyunsaturated fats, e.g., soya and corn oil, are the safest and the best (truth: polyunsaturated oils are the sources of inflammatory prostaglandins, allergic leukotrienes, and blood clot inducing thrombaxane, among other unhealthy compounds).

In short, enemies of coco oil have relied on falsehoods to try to destroy an industry that has provided food, livelihood and other necessities to millions of people in the Philippines and across the world for generations. Although it is strictly speaking not a tree, the coconut is often termed “the tree of life,” for its many wonderful uses, from the roots to the trunk, and from the nuts to the leaves. One can’t find a more useful “tree” than the coconut.

At home, we have tried VCO, with very good results, on a number of ailments and conditions such as coughs and colds, sinusitis, skin rashes, acne, canker sores, mosquito bites, among others. Applied on the face, VCO relaxes and soothes the facial muscles with its warming effect while improving skin tone. Daily doses of VCO are a good health maintainer and food supplement as well.

Dr. Dayrit has listed down many beneficial effects and good qualities of VCO: it provides energy quickly and for many hours; it does not cause and instead reduces obesity; it improves digestion and nutrient absorption as well as regulates bowel movement; it kills certain viruses, bacteria and fungi; it boosts immunity to cancer; it is anti-inflammatory in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases; it is effective against skin diseases when locally applied; it moisturizes the skin and relieves itching and chafing; and it is resistant to oxidation and has the longest shelf life of all oils.

The secret behind VCOs curative powers is the MCFA, which is easily digested and absorbed by the body and more quickly metabolized into energy compared to the LCFA. Dr. Dayrit has called coconut oil a functional food for aside from providing energy, nutrition and health, it can prevent infections, boosts immunity, reverse disease states and cure many types of illnesses. But because coconut oil can effect so many cures, Dayrit thinks that the name “drugstore in a bottle” is most apt.

In his book, Dr. Dayrit cites many cases of cures brought about by VCO but he thinks that more instances of successful treatment of different ailments using VCO are waiting to be documented and reported. Indeed, from history and tradition, the coconut has been so much part of the life of our ancestors and forebears. However, our desire to adopt to so-called “modern” ways of life have pulled us far from our roots that we have almost forgotten the coconut’s essential role in our culture and economy over generations. As the story of coconut oil’s “death and resurrection” suggests, sometimes the more things change, the more they remain the same.

By Yes Tirol Dumagan
Published on September 3, 2006 - Bohol Standard

This is another story with a familiar plot yet rarely told â€" for the very reason of triviality despite its apparent evidence in our society today. This, the very manifestation of the clear boundaries between the rich few and the many poor, is what I call an irrevocable pain, unless challenged by the deprived, underprivileged majority. Of what reasons these obvious class identities exist here in our country, that’s for us to find out. Of why it has proliferated severely, that’s for us to delve deeper.

When I said irrevocable pain, I refer to it as a bitter acceptance of the undeniable fact. The fact that we belong to a society where all institutions are controlled by ruling elites. Where all forms of development are determined by these elites, may it be in our government institutions, in our economy, technology, education, even religion and mass media â€" though there are always exemptions to the rule.

A one Juan dela Cruz cannot just run for politics because definitely he cannot just defeat Gloria or whoever influential now in our Philippine politics. For one, more than his remarkable credentials, if he doesn’t have that one big factor, that is, if he doesn’t have funds to support his candidacy, then, obviously he has no place in our politics. Another reason, if that Juan dela Cruz is deeply imbibed with his genuine and valued principles, then he might not be able to reach his political aspirations. Now what am I saying? The fact that this is happening right now in our society is an excruciating idea. But it doesn’t of course mean that this awful idea is irreparable. We can always break this notion. If only we all want to. One Juan dela Cruz is qualified to run for a seat in our government. He has noble ideas, sure. But if he’d work by himself, then expect that worst situations continue. But if given that all will be inspired to challenge and change the perspective of politicking in our country, then even without adopting a new system of government in our country today, we can definitely achieve the one true hope of each Filipino, a better Philippines.

I said irrevocable pain because I always hate the notion that all good citizens in our country has turned evil. The idealisms of these ones good had changed by the influence carried by the scornful Gloria and her alter egos. And what’s irritating is the fact that all these “great men” are playing fool around themselves. They exchange and re-shuffle power and position from time to time and that’s what they do all the time. That’s how they do it to maintain their power and influence and pride. I would say that our society is unfair, yes. The status quo is that we have these few elites, “organized minority” bound by one principle that is, domination over their areas. And at the same time, we have this “unorganized majority”, the working class, the poor, who, at any rate, don’t even bother to question such horrible setting. That’s why the rich gets richer everyday and the poor gets poorer. But this doesn’t lead to the idea of giving up and surrendering to this very concept. What we therefore need is not to accept whatever is fed to us by these corrupt influential people who don’t have other goals but personal. We therefore need people like the kind of Juan dela Cruz as I describe it above, who, even with a terrible political situation in our country, still pursue its plan to serve for the nation’s interest. We therefore need someone who feels to the people’s needs and interests. We therefore need one Juan dela Cruz who will lead us to progress…and definitely it’s not Gloria. Never was, never is and never will be.

Bohol Island thrills ASEAN ministers

This year, the province of Bohol, particularly the beautiful island of Panglao, was privileged enough to be selected as the venue for this annual gathering of the Special Senior Officials Meeting of the 27th ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF).

Most, if not all, of the ASEAN ministers wanted to extend their stay in the island as the aesthetic beauty and the warmth of the people thrilled them no end.

The gathering was held at the posh pavilion of the Bohol Beach Club in the tourist’ island of Panglao.

In his opening address, Gov. Erico B. Aumentado emphasized the importance of such an international gathering to Bohol’s booming agro-eco-tourism industry.

The governor led local officials in welcoming the delegates, which started arriving Tuesday, August 29 for the three-day gathering that lasted till Aug. 31, Thursday.

Philippine Secretary of Agriculture, Domingo F. Panganiban, delivered the keynote address.

In his message, the secretary emphasized the relevance of sustaining cooperation, convergence, and commitment of the 10-member nations of ASEAN in trying to achieve common development goals in the region on agriculture, trade and commerce.

He also mentioned that the Philippines will host and chair this year’s 12th ASEAN Summit in December with the theme “One Caring and Sharing Community.”

Delegates to this year’s meeting of ASEAN Senior Officials to the AMAF were headed by Dato Haji Mohd Hamid Bin Haji Mohd Jaafar of the country of Brunei Darussalam, Mr. San Vanty of Cambodia, Dr. Hasanuddin Ibrahim of Indonesia, Mr. Xaypladeth Choulamany of Lao PDR, Tan Sri Dato’ Abi Musa Asa’ari Mohamed Nor of Malaysia, U Tin Htut Oo of the country of Myanmar, Mr. Suthiporn Chirapanda of Thailand, Dr. Chua Sin Bin of Singapore, Mrs. Hoang Thi Dung of Vietnam, and Assistant Secretary Romeo Recide of the Philippines. Dr. Somsak Pippopinyo headed the ASEAN Secretariat, who facilitated this year’s SSOM.

This year’s Chairman of the 27th Special SOM-AMAF is DA Undersecretary Segfredo Serrano, and co-chaired by Asst. Secretary Catherine Mae Santos of the DA Central Office, and Regional Executive Director of Region VII, Dr. Eduardo B. Lecciones, Jr.

AMAF meetings are held yearly and attended by ASEAN Ministers and Senior Officials in charge of agriculture, fisheries and forestry.

These are preceded by regular Senior Officials Meetings, which usually review the implementation of projects under AMAF, as reported by the ASEAN Sectoral Working Groups on Crops, Livestock, Fisheries, Research and Development, Agricultural Training and Extension, Cooperatives, and Joint Promotion of Agricultural and Fisheries Products.

The Philippines hosted the AMAF meeting last year in Tagaytay City. (Publicity/Media Affairs Committee, SSOM-27TH AMAF) - printed on September 3, 2006 - Bohol Standard

EVEN if provincial police director SSupt Arturo Evangelista is relieved from his post, the high incidence of crime here won’t come to an end.

A town mayor who did not sign the petition of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP-Bohol Chapter) asking “to change the image and leadership of the Bohol police” said peace and order does not only rest in the hands of the police.

“If the present socio-economic crisis continue and people’s lives remain to be miserable, crimes against properties and killings will continue,” he said requesting anonymity.

He pointed to the real situation in many towns where people have no jobs, families barely eating twice a day, children not going to school and the reliance of many to games of chance like masiao-suertres.

“Robberies, killings (for hire) or violent incidents are indication of despair. Many Boholano actually feel their lives are not getting any better,” he added.

The same observation is reflected in the last poll survey of the Holy Name University Research Center saying many Boholanos still find little hope of a better life in the next few years.

Local support Local executives were reported to have resented an earlier comment from Evangelista questioning the use of the intelligence funds that is appropriated by LGUs annually.

The 45 mayors who signed the petition against Evangelista were believed doing it as their way of hitting back the police provincial director.

LMP-Bohol President Inabanga Mayor Roygie Jumamoy however said they actually do not mean to ask that Evangelista be relieved.

The mayors said they have full trust of Gov. Erico Aumentado who personally chose Evangelista as police provincial director and it is up to him to appraise the present situation of the high incidence of crime here.

Aumentado earlier said he does not believe local mayors are not supporting the police with their intelligence funds.

“I don’t agree to that,” he said when asked by some members of the media.

“Intelligence funds are not only for police operations support. These funds are also used for some other related programs including maintaining the activities and projects of the local peace and order councils in every municipality,” the governor explained. - Published on September 3, 2006

An attempt to silence circulated reports of a multi-million bank fraud happening here in the city instead took a backlash this week.

Depositors, hearing the report for the first time discussed over local radio DyRD demanded that such things should be made public to protect a Boholano community known to be thrift conscious, and are entrusting hard earned money to banks.

In an emergency closed-door meeting with Bohol Tri-Media Association president Peter Dejaresco held Tuesday at the JJ’s Seafoods this city, the Bohol Bankers Association requested that reports of the alleged multi-million bank fraud should be treated with caution.

Deo Uy, Metro Bank manager and the association’s vice president for external affairs said in a radio interview that the meeting was spurred by ongoing rumors of such a scam hitting a bank here.

BBA President Marietta Gazatan (PS Bank manager) said there is no need to panic based on such reports since it only involved one bank and is an isolated case.

The association wanted the report frozen until facts are made available identifying which bank, what kind of ‘scam’ was utilized and who were behind these.

“Sensationalizing the issue may damage the banking industry here and would just create unwanted panic among depositors,” Uy said as he defended the association’s official position on the issue.

Radio callers demanded that if the association cannot name the bank, each of the bank members should issue a statement stating that their particular bank is not the one involved in the reported scam.

But the explanation did not hold water to the listening depositors and a radio caller volunteered the information on the involvement of the Bank of Commerce branch here located at the ground floor of the CAP Building along CPG Avenue.

Later in the day, at 5 pm. Bank of Commerce issued a press statement admitting that on one of their employees is being investigated resulting from a complaint of a depositor.

Bank fraud
In a check with the City Prosecutor’s Office, it was learned that a Bank of Commerce employee is facing two criminal charges; for Estafa and Falsification of private documents by a private individual.

The complaint was filed by May Ann Ramasola, daughter of Ted Ramasola, owners of the Ramasola Studio Original located along CPG Avenue this city.

It alleged that sometime in February this year, respondent bank employee offered them to transfer an account of Value Time Deposit to another banking package that yields a higher interest.

Complainant agreed to the transfer and trusting on the bank employee, she gave her bankbook and a blank withdrawal slip.

She learned later that an amount of more than P1-million was withdrawn from her account using a forged signature.

City Assistant Prosecutor Conrado Supremo has set the case for preliminary hearing on Sept. 11, 2006. - Published by The Bohol Standard on September 3, 2006