MORE NEWS, BAGUIO CITY

‘Be proud as protectors’ Razon tells PMA cadets
BY DEXTER A SEE

FORT DEL PILAR, Baguio City — Philippine National Police chief Director-General Avelino I. Razon, Jr. told 1,200 cadets of the Philippine Military Academy to stand proud as protectors of the country and its people from the evils of society once in the uniformed service.

Razon said this during recognition rites of the 271 cadets comprising the PMA Class Lakas Tipon Alagad ng Bayan (Laon Alab) of 2011 held at the grounds of the Borromeo field recently.

The admission of the upcoming military officers into the Academy gives the right to the institution to develop and mold them into responsible uniformed officers of the country in the future, he added.

You have committed yourselves to the regimented life of soldiers, surrendering the joys of youth to be molded and trained in discipline, courage and gallantry. Well, have it, endure it and be proud of it," the PNP chief said.

He added courage, integrity and loyalty are virtues that define a true PMA and must inspire and encourage young military officers to face any adversity however difficult or enormous.

"Break one virtue and you will lose the rest," he said while challenging the cadets to face the difficulties of cadet life with the three important virtues.

He told cadets to have the courage to face the physical hardships along the way. "Courage to always stand up and fight for what is right and just. Courage to be able to accept and acknowledge mistakes and correct them, to stand firm for conviction and to persevere and survive under the most lying times and circumstances."

At the same time, he said cadets "must live their life in the Academy with integrity and purpose. Integrity that is deep and untarnished and on the highest degree to guide them through rough and hard times ahead."

The PNP chief added cadets must exercise loyalty that is deep and unwavering.

"Loyalty that is wise and discerning. Loyalty not only to the institution but also loyalty that is steadfast and unwavering to the flag and the country. Ours is a country with a devoted and patriotic people. I always believe that one of the best and bravest ways to show our devotion to our country is take the profession of arms," he said.

Razon urged them to always heed duty that is sincere and service beyond self to bring back the old glory of the police and military.

Public safety from crime and terror is everybody’s concern and men in the uniformed service must perform this great responsibility for the country and its people," Razon said.


Cement batching plants banned in Baguio City
BY AILEEN P. REFUERZO

BAGUIO CITY – The operation of cement batching plants is now officially prohibited in the city.

Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr. signed into law ordinance 43 series of 2007 which bans the operation of cement batching plants in the city due to their destructive effects to the environment.

Vice Mayor Daniel Farinas, who authored the ordinance, said there is a need to completely prohibit the operation of cement batching plants within the limits of the city to safeguard the city’s environment.

“Baguio City is one growing metropolis that strictly recognizes the preservation of its beauty and grandeur much so because the greater income the city benefits from its tourism industry which demands that the national environs be clean, green and ideally free from the hazards of pollutants, garbage and eyesores,” Farinas noted.

He said batching plants are known to be “disruptive of the smooth and natural course of the environment” as they cause pollution to land, water and air due to the by-products of the processes that batching plant products undergo.

He said the plants may be cleared by securing environmental compliance certificates but still the plants should be put up outside the city limits.

“It is only wise therefore, with the aid of this legislative measure to prohibit the operation of batching plants,” he said.

With the measure’s final approval, all batching plants operating within the city limits are given 30 days from the date of effectivity of the measure to cease their operations.

Moratorium on mining sought : Group opposes entry of foreign companies in RP
BAGUIO CITY – The rich mineral resources of the Cordillera Region would remain deposited beneath the ground if anti-mining advocates succeed in preventing the conduct of mining operations in the different parts of the region.

This developed as the militant Cordillera People’s Alliance appealed to officials in the different parts of the region to push for a moratorium on mining operations until such time that the government issued an alternative pro-people mining policy.

The group and the Save Apayao People’s Organization have formed an alliance that strongly opposes the opening of the mining industry in the country to foreign companies.

Likewise, the CPA demanded that mining investors in the country should stop their projects in the Cordillera because it would result in the displacement of the indigenous cultural communities from their land and would also cause environmental degradation.

It said that the Mining Act of 1995 is a complete sellout of the people’s patrimony to foreign capitalists, and causes irreparable environmental, social and cultural damage that makes ordinary people to suffer.

The anti-mining advocates fear that the entry of the Anglo-American Mining Co. and BHP Billiton in the region would cause further destruction to the people’s resources.

Anglo-American is the fourth largest mining company based in the United Kingdom. It has four mining exploration projects in the country, three of which are located in the Cordillera.

These the copper-gold project in Conner, Apayao and in Kalinga, being pursued through its subsidiary, the Cordillera Exploration Inc; the Pacdal copper extension project in Tuba, Benguet, which is being operated in partnership with Philex Mining Corp., and the Far Southeast Project in Mankayan, Benguet, which is being operated in partnership with the Lepanto Consolidate Mining Corp.

BHP Billiton is considered the largest mining company in the world.

CPA said the Anglo-American has records of human rights and environmental abuses in its operations in South Africa and North America.

It was named by the Canada Commission for Environmental Cooperation as one of the lead polluters throughout North America and it has paid South Africans the world’s lowest wages.

But pro-mining advocates disputed the allegation of the group, saying that mining operations have greatly helped provide descent employment for people and have helped in the economic development of host communities as well as the whole country. – Dexter A. See