NEWS BRIEFS
>> Friday, October 7, 2016
Mt Province emergency
responders given training
BONTOC,
Mountain Province -- The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management
Council conducted basic incident command system training here at Ridgebrooke
Hotel and Restaurant last week.
This was to enhance skills of emergency
responders and increase effectiveness and minimize slip-ups during emergency
operations.
Resource persons were from the Office of
Civil Defense -Cordillera Administrative Region led by assistant regional
director engineer Jose Ignacio Valera.
Gov. Bonifacio C. Lacwasan, Jr. expressed his
gratitude for the training opportunity given to the province saying , “Through
this training, capability on DRMM are enhanced. There is no better armor
against any eventuality than being prepared. This training will further enhance
our disaster preparedness as we strive for a disaster resilient Mountain
Province,” he remarked. -- Laycha K.
Marra
Baguio minors to be prohibited
from pawning
BAGUIO CITY-- A Baguio councilor wants that minors will be barred
from pawning or selling items to pawnshops.
According
to councilor Edgar Avila, he filed resolution prohibiting minors below 18 years
old from pawning or pledging or transacting with any pawnshops in the city. He
said this will help stop youth find accessibility to drug abuse.
In his explanation, the prevalence of drug
and other substance abuse among today's youth has spawned different ways and
means by which they can sustain their
habit. "Just so they can raise the money needed to purchase drugs,
alcohol, or other dangerous substances, or simply to maintain a carefree
lifestyle beyond what their ordinary school allowance can be provide, many
young people go to the extent of pawning or pledging property of value, whether
obtained from legal or illegal sources," Avila.
The councilor said that the present wording
of Presidential Decree No. 114 or the "Pawnshop Regulation Act"
contains no prohibition of minors from transacting with pawnshops. He added
that in practice, there is a marked laxity among pawnshop owners and operators
when extending loans for property pawned or pledged. -- Aldwin Quitasol
Abra TESDA opens
training for dropouts
PIDIGAN,
Abra -- Many have flunked and quit school because they are poor in English or
Math. However, language, number and other mind intelligence are not the only
options to earn for a living today but more on possessing skills and developing
them.
Rodulfo Bragas, administrator of
Technical Education and Skills Development Authority Provincial Training Center
here, said this, as he urged individuals to enroll in their training courses.
There are many adults who have not completed
their basic education and out-of-school youth who wanted to go to school but
are embarrassed to do so. Because of that, they are left with no choice but
become low-wage workers over strenuous labor, he said.
“But that was before. Now they can come here
in TESDA. Learn new skills, enroll in courses, go abroad and make money.”
He added they have produced many graduates in
Automotive NC1 and NC2, Welding NC1 and NC2, Electrical Installation and
Maintenance and others who are now in Australia, Canada and other regions.
With availability of the center’s facility
and equipment, Bragas said they expect to produce 1,500 course completers this
year and more in the coming years.
“The wealthiest people in the world today are
known for their skills that they developed to the utmost. Some even were
college dropouts. That is why we encourage people to enroll in TESDA,” Bragas
said. -- Ginalyn B. Brioso
Ifugao town
reconstitutes local peace, order council
LAGAWE, Ifugao -- The local government unit here has
reconstituted its municipal peace and order council.
Mayor Martin Habawel, Jr. said
the reassignmentand designation of members affected performance of the council.
“The reorganization of the MPOC is to ensure
the operation, accomplishment and execution of programs and projects for the
constant maintenance of public peace and order as well as the safety of the
citizenry,” Habawel said.
The MPOC is chaired by the municipal mayor
with the vice-mayor as vice-chairperson. Members are some heads of municipal
offices, representatives from government and non-government offices, religious
sectors, barangay captains, and Sangguniang Bayan committee chairperson on
peace and order.
The MPOC is tasked to formulate plans and
recommend measures that will improve or enhance peace and order, monitor the
implementation of peace and order program and projects and the operation of
civilian volunteers, self-defense organizations and other counter insurgency
programs, among others. -- Marcelo B. Lihgawon
Baguio trash hauling getting
more expensive
BAGUIO
CITY -- Councilor Peter Fianza urged waste segregation and recycling or
re-using of non-biodegradable materials to reduce solid waste production in
barangays and lessen city government expenses on hauling of waste.
Fianza
stressed this during the public consultation on proposed legislations of
Environment and Natural Resources sector with Councilors Elaine Sembrano, Lilia
Fariñas, and Mylen Yaranon.
According to Fianza, the city waste
generation stands at 140 to 150 tons per day, and the city government pays P1,
350 per ton for the tipping and transport of the generated solid waste.
That is why the city council is reiterating
its call for every barangay to continue to reduce waste production and
strengthen recycling efforts and advocacies in your respective localities, he
said.
He said the city has no integrated solid
waste management system yet and that the 10 – year Solid Waste Management
Plan(SWMP) approved by the Solid Waste Management Commission is up for revisit.
This he said did not pass through the Sangguniang Panlungsod and public
consultation before it was submitted to the Commission. He assured that
all the proposals in the consultation will be taken into consideration when
they revisit the city’s 10 – year SWMP. -- Carlito Dar
29 individuals donate blood
in Mt Province
BONTOC,
Mountain Province -- Twenty nine individuals recently donated
13,050 cc of blood to help save lives.
Veronica Tactay, Chapter administrator of
Philippine Red Cross here, said 26 of the donors were extracted at the
Sagada rural health unit and the other three at the Sadanga RHU.
Tactay said extracted blood was used by
patients undergoing dialysis at the Bontoc General Hospital. The rest are
stocked at the Red Cross office here.
The bloodletting activity was conducted by
Philippine Red Cross – Mountain Province Chapter in partnership with the
Provincial Health Office, Department of Health Provincial Office, Sagada and
Sadanga RHUs, Bontoc General Hospital and the Luis Hora Memorial Regional
Hospital.
The Red Cross is intensifying its
advocacy on blood donation with the increase in the demand of blood by patients
from the province who are confined at the provincial hospital as
well as confined in the different hospitals in Baguio and Benguet.
Red Cross volunteers are
scheduled to conduct training on first aid, basic leadership,
water and sanitation hygiene for elementary pupils in Catao and Bagabag
elementary schools in Buringal, Paracelis on Sept. 19 – 30. -- Juliet B. Saley
NFA-Kalinga assures
rice supply for typhoon months
TABUK
CITY, Kalinga --The National Food
Authority assured sufficient rice buffer in Kalinga during the typhoon months.
Provincial assistant manager Ric Baliang
reported their latest inventory showed current stock of 8,000 bags rice and 11,000
bags ready to mill palay which when milled would yield a total stock of 17,000
bags of rice.
The provincial station had earlier supplied
rice to its more than 80 bigasan outlets in various strategic locations to
ensure available and affordable quality rice to people in far-flung areas
during the typhoon months, Baliang said. NFA rice sells at P27-32/kg.
Meanwhile, in line with its “calamity rice
loan program” allowing local government units to make rice withdrawals for
distribution during calamities, Baliang informed that the NFA has already
signed a memorandum of agreement with some LGUs. He reminded other LGUs
to follow suit.
The move stemmed from disaster response
evaluations that showed the need to earlier dispatch basic needs like food to
far areas which may be isolated because of landslides and related risks due to
typhoons. -- Larry T. Lopez
Baguio
congressman files bill to raise SSS pension
BAGUIO
CITY -- Rep. Mark Go has filed
House Bill 1853 which seeks to amend the1997 Social Security Act by
increasing the current minimum pension from P1,200.00 to P3,200.00
Go said the bill was filed with the private
sector retirees in mind, “so that they can cope with the high cost of living
expenses against inadequate financial source.”
“It is sad to note that since the enactment
of RA 8282 in 1997, SSS pensioners have not received any significant pension
hike that will augment the meager amount they currently receive as monthly
pension for their food sustenance, and maintenance medicines, especially senior
citizens,” he added.
The lawmaker said while he understands that
the SSS administration worries about the “SSS fund’s actuarial life, the fact
is that the current pension rate is measly and hardly enough to protect against
the hazards of disability, sickness, death and other contingencies, which
results to financial burden.” The actual value of the
P1,200.00 per month SSS pension is worth only around P500 because of the
inflation.
Go said SSS fund’s life can be
protected by better fund management.
Bauko ecological
solid waste board
reconstituted
BAUKO,
Mountain Province -- Mayor Abraham B. Akilit reconstituted
the Municipal Ecological Solid Waste Management Board (MESWMB) to enhance its
programs.
The MESWMB is composed of the mayor as
chairman. Members include engineer Domingo E. Pilpilen, Sanitary officer of the
Luis Hora Memorial Regional Hospital; Councilor Susan B. Awisan, SB chair on
environmental sanitation; ABC president Faustino Sili; municipal health
officer, Dr. Samuel Masidong; agriculturist Carolyn Wandalen; planning and
development coordinator Walter Dalang; engineer Alfredo Diano of
Municipal Engineer’s Office; Christopher Bosaing of provincial
Environment and Natural Resources Office and Archie Pakipac of the Municipal Sanitary
Office.
Secretariat of the Board includes Irene
Pangpangdeo of the Office of the Municipal Planning and Development Corrdinator
and Archie Pakipac of the Rural Health Unit. -- Juliet B. Saley
CRSHS heads La
Trinidad Inter-school press confab
LA
TRINIDAD, Benguet -- The Cordillera Regional Science High School headed the
first La Trinidad inter-school campus
press conference here at CRSHS Sept. 17
to enhance journalistic competence and orient
campus writers on trends in campus journalism, Said event was dubbed
SURAT (strengthening and upgrading journalistic skills of writers and advisers
of Trinidad.)
Keynote speaker Karlston S. Lapniten, a
Baguio-based Correspondent of CNN Philippines, urged the 96 participants to go
online as 21st century campus journalists.
“Go online. Use social media to globally tell
stories in your own perspective as campus journalists,” he said.
Lapniten urged participants to make their
school publication present in the internet saying through this, more people and
the whole world would read their stories.
In consonance with the theme “21st century
writers: the catalyst of change,” Lapniten said campus writers are agents of
change in their respective schools, community, or neighborhood. “This is
because student writers are the torch bearers who will shed light on issues
affecting their schools and communities.”
One-hour lectures and competitions on
different journalistic events were held wherein seven public secondary schools
in La Trinidad participated.
Daniel D. Peredo, CRSHS principal, suggested
this event could be an annual activity among secondary schools in this
strawberry-producing town, which the school paper advisers agreed upon during
their meeting. --- Augustin A. Dao-anis
Kiangan LGU
strengthens moral recovery program
KIANGAN,
Ifugao- - The municipal government here is strengthening its moral
recovery crogram (MRP) initially with orientation and planning workshop among
barangay chaplains and service providers.
The government has embarked on the MRP to “recover
the moral deterioration and redirect the people towards righteous governance
and good citizenry adopting the core values of Makatao, Makabansa, Maka Dios
and Makakalikasan.”
Facilitated by the Municipal Social Welfare
and Development Office (MSWDO) and the Municipal Human Resource Office, the
workshop was venue for participants to know more about MRP and to prepare their
action plan.
MSWDO head Mario Indopia told participants
the MRP has a two-pronged focus which are the clients in the barangay local
government units (BLGUs) and other institutions and the service provider groups
or the Municipal Chaplaincy.
Chaplain, as explained by lawyer Leticia
Morales, is a person of any status designated by the government, the governor
or the mayor to preach or bring the good news or moral recovery in designated
areas. Chaplaincy on the other hand is the extended ministry outside the
four corners of a church and its focus is moral or deals with the words of God
and not of church doctrines.
Chaplain Albert Ngitit presented the code of
ethics which is purely biblical and culturally accepted ethics in which moral
attitude and values should be incorporated in biblical teachings but not church
doctrines.
Chaplain Roland Dimog expounded on the
principles of counseling saying counselors should never dictate on what people
should do but to come up with the best decision for themselves by bringing out
the good in every individual. They should never let the counselee feel
threatened and guilty but act as the model of the love and grace of Jesus
Christ exemplified on earth and taught in the Bible.
The group made their action plan that
includes regular conduct of Bible exhortation in the Sangguniang Bayan, BLGUs,
police, general assemblies and other occasions such as the Nutrition Day,
Family Day and others.
They will also conduct training for barangay
councils and employees, orientation of ministers and workers on chaplaincy,
officially include Bible exhortation during the Family Development Sessions of
the 4Ps, Interfaith Prayer Gathering, quarterly get together or fellowship and
continuous monthly chaplaincy meetings and education. -- Daniel B. Codamon
Bangued mayor urges
public: Help solve garbage problem
BANGUED,
Abra -- Mayor Dominic B. Valera urged cooperation and patience of residents in
this capital town to help in solving grbage problem.
Valera said the local government closed the
dumping site along Abra River bank in BarangayCalaba following complaints from
local officials of Ilocos Sur of garbage being washed out downstream when the
Abra River swells.
The mayor said the LGU is trying to work out
for the establishment of a municipal dumpsite that would meet the standards of
the DENR to prevent further hazards to the environment.
In the meantime, the LGU put a halt on garbage
collection and asked the households and establishments to segregate their
wastes and put up their own compost pits in their backyards and not to dump
their garbage in the rivers and creeks. -- Maria Teresa B. Benas
Nat’l Food Showdown set Oct. 19-21 in
Baguio
BAGUIO
CITY - - Mark your calendar and prepare to come up to this Summer
Capital to witness the country’s culinary
experts as they battle it out for the 2016 National Chef War in the
Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism (HRT) Week from Oct. 19 to 21.
Hosted by the Hotels and Restaurants
Association of Baguio (HRAB), this year’s HRT Week will showcase
the National Food Showdown. This will be highlighted by the Chef War wherein
the best culinary experts from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao will display their
talents and skills before local and international food experts.
HRAB president and Baguio Country Club
general manager Anthony De Leon, in media forum here, said the 2016 National
Food Showdown is themed| “Agree to agri:
Putting our best food forward” to showcase the country’s
agricultural produce.
Aside from regular culinary competitions for
students and professionals in the hotel, restaurant and tourism industry, other
activities line up include Search for Mr. &Ms. HRAB 2016 and HRAB’s Got
Talent, trade fair and expositions, jobs fair, seminars and other learning
sessions that will be held in three venues namely, Baguio Country Club, CAP –
John Hay Trade and Cultural Center and the Baguio Convention Center.
De Leon said they expect around 10,000
visitors for the events. He said security and safety of the delegates will be
among their top priority.
There is no lean season anymore here in
Baguio, travel time is now much shorter that even weekdays people come up. It
is a good sign of economic activity, showing the spending power of the
different classes, he added. -- Carlito Dar
Sibud-Sibud Cave in
Abra now under DENR program
TINEG,
Abra -- The Sibud-Sibud Cave in this upland town is one of the 39 caves
in the Philippines placed under protection and management of the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources recently.
Saturnina Miguel of the Provincial
Environment and Natural Resources Office said an area receives protection from
DENR for its recognizable beauty and natural and cultural reserves. This
is necessary to preserve the caves so the public could enjoy them.
Sibud-Sibud Cave is found along the road of
Tineng. An ideal place for nature lovers, it can be reached after
travelling a distance of around 33 kms.
It is categorized as Class III since it is
less explored and visited. Accordingly, Class III caves may also be
utilized for economic activities like extraction or collection of guano or
bird’s nest.
The local government units and residents are
looking forward to developing the premises of the Sibud-Sibud Cave
and establishing physical amenities and public utilities for the comfort of
tourists and spelunkers.
Economic activities are expected to grow like
tour guiding and collection of bird’s nest which is sold to foreigners as
souvenir. Guano or bird’s nest is also made as soup and home remedy for certain
illness.
Sibud-Sibud Cave is a threshold to all other
potential natural and wildlife sanctuaries in Abra deserving protection,
stressed Miguel. -- Ginalyn B. Brioso
Japanese Suzu City officials
visit Ifugao
BANAUE,
Ifugao -- Five Japanese officials
recently visited the province to see for themselves the landscapes
and hear from the implementers and local stakeholders the best practices in
facilitating sustainable development in the Globally Important Heritage
Systems(GIAHS) site of Ifugao .
Suzu City Mayor Masuhiro Izumiya accompanied
by the City’s Planning and Financial Division Chief Naoyuki Kaneda, Masako
Koinuma, the Director of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA),
Ifugao Satoyama Meister Training Program (ISMTP) Project Leader Koji Nakamura
and his associate Dr. Rizalina Edpalina, were welcomed at the Ifugao State
University (IFSU) in Lamut with a program.
Mayor Izumiya said that although this was his
first time to visit Ifugao, he heard great stories about the culture of the
people and the scenic spots such as the Ifugao Rice Terraces.
He commended the twinning project between the
Ifugao and Japan GIAHS stakeholders and expects that the ISMTP would continue
to foster stronger relationships between the province and Suzo City. He shared
that his city, like Ifugao, is also faced with the challenge of a decreasing
population due to outmigration of the younger generation in search of better
future outside the place.
ISMTP is a joint undertaking of the IFSU
under president Serafin Ngohayon, Kanazawa University of Japan, University of
the Philippines-Open University, JICA and the Ifugao Provincial Government that
envisions to help maintain the World Heritage Sites in the province by
identifying endeavors that the people may embark and support scholars that will
be trained to spearhead such endeavors.
The program that began in 2014 and will end
this year. The scholars after their training here and in Japan will help
empower the people in the heritage sites improve their quality of life by
harmonizing heritage conservation, environmental preservation and economic
activities.
The group visited Banaue as part
of their two-day itinerary in the province. In their tour of the town,
Ifugao Governor Pedro Mayam-o related stories about the culture, agricultural
practices of the Ifugaos while Mayor Jerry Dalipog admitted that the
conservation of heritage sites to be successful really needs the common efforts
of all stakeholders hence appreciated very much this joint endeavor with the
ISMTP.
The Ifugao Rice Terraces is the only GIAHS
site in the Philippines. -- Daniel B. Codamon
Mayor allays fears on
shift to solar vehicles
BAGUIO
CITY -- The transport sector has nothing to be afraid about the proposed shift
from gas or diesel-powered motor vehicles to solar powered vehicles as
alternative mode of transport, said Mayor Mauricio Domogan.
The mayor told a media forum the city
government is still testing capability of said alternative mode of transport in
the city.
If the pilot test will generate positive
results, “then the next step will be to look into the actual cost of the
vehicle to determine its affordability for the benefit of the members of the
transport sector,” he explained.
The city government has approved the request
of the Glad to be Green group led by businesswoman Gladys Vergara-de Vera to
pilot test the use of the solar-powered bus in the city for two months.
This tests the vehicle’s ability
to maneuver in the mountainous terrain which will determine its possible areas
of operation as it might have limitations especially with the very steep roads
around the city. Also included in the on-going pilot test is a study on the
affordability of solar-powered vehicles which is a main consideration prior to
its use by certain members of the transport sector.
Accordingly, solar-powered vehicles do not
emit smoke which will result to cleaner air for the City, which will result to
better health for the public that will in turn translate to lesser expense in
terms of keeping themselves healthy thus improving productivity and quality of
life.
Domogan said that the acquisition of
franchise will only be applicable when the study on the use of the solar power
vehicle will have been proven feasible and beneficial.
Benguet overshootsrabies vaccination
target
LA
TRINIDAD, Benguet -- The free massive anti-rabies vaccination campaign in the
province was successfully conducted even overshooting its target.
Provincial
Veterinarian Dr. Miriam Tiongan said they have exceeded the target of the dog
population by 7.34 percent which is above the national target of 70% and the
region’s target of 80%.
Of the total dog
population of 35,069 in the 13 towns of the province, 30,628 dogs were
vaccinated.
The capital town of
La Trinidad had the highest number of dogs vaccinated with 6,479 out of the
7,652 dogs.
Other towns that had
high rate of vaccination are Bakun, Kapangan and Buguias.
The campaign is aimed
to eradicate rabies by 2020. Fortunately, no rabid dog case is recorded this
year so far, Tiongan said.
The OPVet is still doing
vaccination but already with a minimal charge. The Office is also
continuously conducting information education and administering spay and neuter
as a means of controlling dog population. -- Susan C. Aro
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