Beneco reaches 50th year/ Marijuana as medicine
>> Saturday, November 4, 2023
BEHIND THE SCENES
Alfred P. Dizon
BAGUIO CITY – The 50th year anniversary of the Benguet Electric Cooperative was held here Friday at its main headquarters along South Drive without much fanfare. Invited guests Baguio mayor Benjamin Magalong and Rep. Mak Go skipped the event along with Benguet Gov. Melchor Diclas. No one from the National Electric Administration also attended.
This, considering the dispute which started when the NEA appointed a Palace official as general manager but opposed by member-consumer-owners. The controversy, which reached Congress, with solons slamming the NEA, hasn’t yet died down.
Assistant GM Melchor Licoben has not yet been endorsed by the NEA to the Beneco Board which only has interim members whose appointments have already lapsed. Licoben is the only remaining contender to the post since one applicant backed out while the other was disqualified.
Beneco sources said elections for board of directors will be held January.
The status of the electric cooperative is in a state of unease considering these, even as talks of a takeover by a power firm from the south are rife. MCOs are silent on the matter except for snide remarks every now and then on social media.
Be that as it may, Happy 50th Anniversary to MCOs and employees of Beneco, they who bring us light, day and night with nary a complaint.
***
Once enacted into law, the proposed Senate bill legalizing use of medical cannabis or marijuana would benefit Cordillera.
BAGUIO CITY – The 50th year anniversary of the Benguet Electric Cooperative was held here Friday at its main headquarters along South Drive without much fanfare. Invited guests Baguio mayor Benjamin Magalong and Rep. Mak Go skipped the event along with Benguet Gov. Melchor Diclas. No one from the National Electric Administration also attended.
This, considering the dispute which started when the NEA appointed a Palace official as general manager but opposed by member-consumer-owners. The controversy, which reached Congress, with solons slamming the NEA, hasn’t yet died down.
Assistant GM Melchor Licoben has not yet been endorsed by the NEA to the Beneco Board which only has interim members whose appointments have already lapsed. Licoben is the only remaining contender to the post since one applicant backed out while the other was disqualified.
Beneco sources said elections for board of directors will be held January.
The status of the electric cooperative is in a state of unease considering these, even as talks of a takeover by a power firm from the south are rife. MCOs are silent on the matter except for snide remarks every now and then on social media.
Be that as it may, Happy 50th Anniversary to MCOs and employees of Beneco, they who bring us light, day and night with nary a complaint.
***
Once enacted into law, the proposed Senate bill legalizing use of medical cannabis or marijuana would benefit Cordillera.
The marijuana trade would prosper and bring livelihood to many folks who would rather plant the still illegal plant considering it is easier to raise as compared to legitimate vegetables like cabbage.
A lot of farmers, particularly from Benguet could switch to the trade. In this case, unless government measures are made, the vegetable industry would take a back seat. Benguet supplies almost 75 percent of vegetable needs of the lowlands like Manila but that is another story.
***
Over the years, the Cordillera had been producing marijuana particularly in hinterlands of the region. The banned plant and its derivatives like hashish had been sold nationwide by drug dealers who knew the ins and outs of evading or conniving reportedly with some corrupt law enforcers.
We are not saying the anti-drug campaign in the region is ineffective. On the contrary, reports have it that it is doing well considering number of arrests of drug dealers and users and numerous marijuana eradication drives particularly in tri-boundaries of Benguet, Kalinga, Ifugao, Mountain Province and the provinces of Ilocos Region like La Union and Ilocos Sur.
***
A report by the government-run Philippine News Agency said authorities destroyed some P771 million worth of marijuana plants in Cordillera during 200 eradication operations from January to Oct. 16 this year.
Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Cordillera Administrative Region Director Julius Paderes was quoted as saying 112 operations were conducted in Benguet; 79 in Kalinga; six in Mountain Province and three in Ifugao.
Most of destroyed marijuana were plants worth P688 million; P2.3 million seedlings; P4.5 million dried marijuana leaves; P70 million marijuana stalks; P2.4 million marijuana bricks and P12,500 seeds.
“Kalinga province recorded the highest amount of destroyed marijuana valued at P624.5 million, although most operations were conducted in Benguet,” Paderes told PNA’s Liza Galao in an interview.
According to Paderes, lawmen made it a point to return to same places now and then because there was always a chance new plantations could be discovered close to sites earlier raided.
“The goal is to fully eradicate the cultivation of marijuana by always returning to villages and sitios. The government’s war on drugs is a continuing effort and we will consistently return to the mountains,” he said.
With PDEA-CAR in anti-drug operations were the Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine Coast Guard and National Bureau of Investigation.
***
Meanwhile, the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) said it was studying proposal of Kalinga Provincial Peace and Order Council to build roads and boost livelihood programs for residents in remote areas to encourage them to stop marijuana cultivation.
“While the government’s thrust is on rehabilitation programs, we are confident that the DDB will fund the proposal as they did for Kapangan over a decade ago,” Paderes said.
Kapangan, in Benguet, had been among top producers of high-grade marijuana in Cordillera. But reports said the trade went down since roads were constructed up to marijuana plantations while livelihood programs were implemented for local folks.
***
Over the years, the Cordillera had been producing marijuana particularly in hinterlands of the region. The banned plant and its derivatives like hashish had been sold nationwide by drug dealers who knew the ins and outs of evading or conniving reportedly with some corrupt law enforcers.
We are not saying the anti-drug campaign in the region is ineffective. On the contrary, reports have it that it is doing well considering number of arrests of drug dealers and users and numerous marijuana eradication drives particularly in tri-boundaries of Benguet, Kalinga, Ifugao, Mountain Province and the provinces of Ilocos Region like La Union and Ilocos Sur.
***
A report by the government-run Philippine News Agency said authorities destroyed some P771 million worth of marijuana plants in Cordillera during 200 eradication operations from January to Oct. 16 this year.
Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Cordillera Administrative Region Director Julius Paderes was quoted as saying 112 operations were conducted in Benguet; 79 in Kalinga; six in Mountain Province and three in Ifugao.
Most of destroyed marijuana were plants worth P688 million; P2.3 million seedlings; P4.5 million dried marijuana leaves; P70 million marijuana stalks; P2.4 million marijuana bricks and P12,500 seeds.
“Kalinga province recorded the highest amount of destroyed marijuana valued at P624.5 million, although most operations were conducted in Benguet,” Paderes told PNA’s Liza Galao in an interview.
According to Paderes, lawmen made it a point to return to same places now and then because there was always a chance new plantations could be discovered close to sites earlier raided.
“The goal is to fully eradicate the cultivation of marijuana by always returning to villages and sitios. The government’s war on drugs is a continuing effort and we will consistently return to the mountains,” he said.
With PDEA-CAR in anti-drug operations were the Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine Coast Guard and National Bureau of Investigation.
***
Meanwhile, the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) said it was studying proposal of Kalinga Provincial Peace and Order Council to build roads and boost livelihood programs for residents in remote areas to encourage them to stop marijuana cultivation.
“While the government’s thrust is on rehabilitation programs, we are confident that the DDB will fund the proposal as they did for Kapangan over a decade ago,” Paderes said.
Kapangan, in Benguet, had been among top producers of high-grade marijuana in Cordillera. But reports said the trade went down since roads were constructed up to marijuana plantations while livelihood programs were implemented for local folks.
All you have to do is throw the seeds on the ground and the plant would grow even without having to cultivate it with expensive chemical fertilizers. The prolific plant could grow anywhere, even on leaves or barks of trees.
BEHIND THE SCENES
Alfred P. Dizon
Dangerous vehicles
BAGUIO CITY –
Driving or walking along city roads in this so-called one of the safest cities
of the world could be dangerous.
A 27-year-old woman died after being run over by a public utility jeepney at the intersection along Otek St. and Bautista streets around 7:45 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 10.
According to city police, the victim was crossing the street when accidentally hit by the jeepney.
The jeep was said to have come from Shuntug St. turning left towards the La Trinidad staging area beside Rizal Park when it accidentally ran over the victim who was crossing the street.
The victim was rushed to the hospital by the Emergency Medical Service and City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office. She sustained traumatic brain injury.
The driver was arrested and now facing charges of reckless imprudence resulting to homicide according to police. The victim was reportedly an engineer in her late 20s.
There were additional details to the story like names of the victim and driver but we will leave it at that in the meantime the investigation is not yet finished.
Suffice to say, I was talking to a lawman who said some drivers have this mistaken belief that for them not to spend much money due to an accident, it is better to make sure the victim is dead so they ram them more.
**
Not so recently, a 30-year-old Grab delivery rider died after he was ran over by a 10-wheeler truck he was trying to overtake along the ascent to Upper Purok Pidawan, Barangay Loakan Proper, in this city.
According to investigation, the Grab rider tried to overtake the truck while ascending a blind curve bound for Loakan Proper. However, a vehicle from the opposite direction forced the Grab driver to maneuver back into his lane.
He allegedly hit the truck’s rear wheel while steering the motorbike to avoid the incoming vehicle.
Police said they released the driver after the parties, and their lawyers agreed to an amicable settlement.
**
Driving also Bokawkan Road could be dangerous if the brake of the vehicle at your front or back malfunctions. One time, a few years back, more than 10 vehicles collided when a truck lost its brakes making it speed down at breakneck speed like the devil about to take lives.
But it is not the fault of four-wheel or more vehicle drivers if they are involved in accidents. Some of these motorcycle riders just pop out of nowhere and cut you forcing you to make a sudden stop as they could be suddenly in front of your front bumper.
Then there are the hotheads or drivers high on drugs. People say some taxi or public utility jeep drivers use shabu so they will not be sleepy even if they just finished 24 hours driving in a mad rush to earn. Some of these PUVs drivers just cut you making you wonder if you are already senile for having slower reflexes.
There are a lot of horror stories along the road. It is good nobody has been shot dead yet by a trigger-happy driver whose ego was bruised by another driver who sped past him.
***
Over in La Trinidad, Benguet just few kilometers from here, it is the same. A foreigner friend of mine who established residence in Baguio says drivers nowadays have become reckless, arrogant or just plain stupid. It could be due to the three years of being affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, he says.
Still in La Trinidad, many accidents have happened along the Baguio-La Trinidad boundary up to Barangay Tomay along the Halsema Highway.
Just a few days ago, a brand new black Toyota Hilux pickup crashed at the sidewalk railing at km 6 along the side of the Benguet State University. It was good those railings were installed a few months back.
The driver was reportedly drunk since the crash happened in the wee hours of the morning. Over the years, many pedestrians have been hit, maimed or died while traversing the highway due to reckless drivers.
***
Still on vehicles. The Baguio City Council recently amended Ordinance No. 15, series of 2011 that banned parking of all motor vehicles marked for sale on all roads in the city.
Under ordinance 81, series of 2023, all motor vehicles marked/tagged ‘For Sale’ or in any phrase/words in circumvention depicting the same meaning to effect sale or swap and any act of disguise to confound detection by authorities shall not be allowed at any time to be parked on all roads, including roadside pay parking spaces, in the city, the public information office announced.
The ‘For Sale’ mark or tag should be covered or removed if the motor vehicle will be parked.
All community police precincts, the Traffic Enforcement Unit and police auxiliaries of the Baguio City Police Office, Traffic and Transportation Management Division under the City Engineering Office and barangay tanods of all barangays in the city having jurisdiction of the road were mandated to strictly implement the ordinance.
Any individual or vehicle owner found violating the ordinance shall be penalized P1,000 for the first offense, P3,000 for the second and P5,000 for the third offense.
Every succeeding offense shall be penalized with maximum amount of P5,000 fine.
The ordinance tasked the City Treasury Office to print traffic citation tickets indicating as among traffic violations payment of fines for violation of the ordinance.
The ordinance stipulated that to monitor subsequent offenses, community police precincts, Traffic Enforcement Unit and police auxiliaries of the BCPO, Traffic and TMD and barangay tanods of all barangays are tasked to coordinate, have logbooks and record all apprehensions to track down first and repeat offenders for proper penalties.
A 27-year-old woman died after being run over by a public utility jeepney at the intersection along Otek St. and Bautista streets around 7:45 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 10.
According to city police, the victim was crossing the street when accidentally hit by the jeepney.
The jeep was said to have come from Shuntug St. turning left towards the La Trinidad staging area beside Rizal Park when it accidentally ran over the victim who was crossing the street.
The victim was rushed to the hospital by the Emergency Medical Service and City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office. She sustained traumatic brain injury.
The driver was arrested and now facing charges of reckless imprudence resulting to homicide according to police. The victim was reportedly an engineer in her late 20s.
There were additional details to the story like names of the victim and driver but we will leave it at that in the meantime the investigation is not yet finished.
Suffice to say, I was talking to a lawman who said some drivers have this mistaken belief that for them not to spend much money due to an accident, it is better to make sure the victim is dead so they ram them more.
**
Not so recently, a 30-year-old Grab delivery rider died after he was ran over by a 10-wheeler truck he was trying to overtake along the ascent to Upper Purok Pidawan, Barangay Loakan Proper, in this city.
According to investigation, the Grab rider tried to overtake the truck while ascending a blind curve bound for Loakan Proper. However, a vehicle from the opposite direction forced the Grab driver to maneuver back into his lane.
He allegedly hit the truck’s rear wheel while steering the motorbike to avoid the incoming vehicle.
Police said they released the driver after the parties, and their lawyers agreed to an amicable settlement.
**
Driving also Bokawkan Road could be dangerous if the brake of the vehicle at your front or back malfunctions. One time, a few years back, more than 10 vehicles collided when a truck lost its brakes making it speed down at breakneck speed like the devil about to take lives.
But it is not the fault of four-wheel or more vehicle drivers if they are involved in accidents. Some of these motorcycle riders just pop out of nowhere and cut you forcing you to make a sudden stop as they could be suddenly in front of your front bumper.
Then there are the hotheads or drivers high on drugs. People say some taxi or public utility jeep drivers use shabu so they will not be sleepy even if they just finished 24 hours driving in a mad rush to earn. Some of these PUVs drivers just cut you making you wonder if you are already senile for having slower reflexes.
There are a lot of horror stories along the road. It is good nobody has been shot dead yet by a trigger-happy driver whose ego was bruised by another driver who sped past him.
***
Over in La Trinidad, Benguet just few kilometers from here, it is the same. A foreigner friend of mine who established residence in Baguio says drivers nowadays have become reckless, arrogant or just plain stupid. It could be due to the three years of being affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, he says.
Still in La Trinidad, many accidents have happened along the Baguio-La Trinidad boundary up to Barangay Tomay along the Halsema Highway.
Just a few days ago, a brand new black Toyota Hilux pickup crashed at the sidewalk railing at km 6 along the side of the Benguet State University. It was good those railings were installed a few months back.
The driver was reportedly drunk since the crash happened in the wee hours of the morning. Over the years, many pedestrians have been hit, maimed or died while traversing the highway due to reckless drivers.
***
Still on vehicles. The Baguio City Council recently amended Ordinance No. 15, series of 2011 that banned parking of all motor vehicles marked for sale on all roads in the city.
Under ordinance 81, series of 2023, all motor vehicles marked/tagged ‘For Sale’ or in any phrase/words in circumvention depicting the same meaning to effect sale or swap and any act of disguise to confound detection by authorities shall not be allowed at any time to be parked on all roads, including roadside pay parking spaces, in the city, the public information office announced.
The ‘For Sale’ mark or tag should be covered or removed if the motor vehicle will be parked.
All community police precincts, the Traffic Enforcement Unit and police auxiliaries of the Baguio City Police Office, Traffic and Transportation Management Division under the City Engineering Office and barangay tanods of all barangays in the city having jurisdiction of the road were mandated to strictly implement the ordinance.
Any individual or vehicle owner found violating the ordinance shall be penalized P1,000 for the first offense, P3,000 for the second and P5,000 for the third offense.
Every succeeding offense shall be penalized with maximum amount of P5,000 fine.
The ordinance tasked the City Treasury Office to print traffic citation tickets indicating as among traffic violations payment of fines for violation of the ordinance.
The ordinance stipulated that to monitor subsequent offenses, community police precincts, Traffic Enforcement Unit and police auxiliaries of the BCPO, Traffic and TMD and barangay tanods of all barangays are tasked to coordinate, have logbooks and record all apprehensions to track down first and repeat offenders for proper penalties.
BEHIND THE SCENES
Alfred P. Dizon
Guns, goons and gold
BAGUIO CITY – Vote-buying had been a practice in this Banana Republic over the years. Wayward politicos lived by the three Gs – guns, goons and gold to win, particularly in the lowlands.
Not so
much in the uplands like Cordillera, but then, politicos with the three GS, are
once again rearing their ugly heads in Abra. A candidate for barangay captain
was killed last week while armed men clashed with police.The armed men reportedly knocked on houses to persuade residents to vote for their candidates.
***
Top provincial officials said no such incident occurred during the past two elections expressing alarm over reports that 122 BSKE candidates in the province were forced to withdraw because of harassment while members of the board of election inspectors refused to participate in the elections.
At least 44 teachers reportedly begged off from serving in the BSKE on Oct. 30, election day.
***
A hundred more cops are due to be deployed to the province to maintain peace and order or serve as election supervisors as barangay/Sangguniang Kabataan elections go into high gear until Oct. 30.
Whether more violence will occur in the province the coming few days remain to be seen. According to sources, hardened officials or candidates are still doing illegal things like vote-buying or intimidation to win elections.
***
Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. on Thursday called on voters to ditch vote buying to protect what he called sanctity of the electoral process.
“That’s why I call on everyone: let’s work together to protect our electoral process against those who commit vote buying and vote selling. Wakasan natin ang kanser ng lipunan na ito (Let's put an end to this cancer in our society)!” Abalos said in a statement, as the campaign period for the BSKE officially kicked off.
He said voters are reminded they have the power to initiate change in their communities by picking the right candidates.
“Your votes are very important, especially because the barangays play a big role in implementing government programs and policies),” he added.
Abalos also said the Philippine National Police (PNP) is ready to deploy more personnel, particularly in areas determined by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) as areas of concern, to maintain public safety and security and prevent all forms of election-related violence in communities.
“The DILG and the PNP are with the Comelec and the Filipino people in monitoring and ensuring the peaceful conduct of the election, from the campaign to the counting. Let us work together to promote the orderly, clean, and peaceful elections of our barangay officials towards the achievement of our goal of a New Philippines,” Abalos said.
The PNP said Wednesday it would deploy 187,000 police officers across the country as part of heightened alert measures for the polls.
***
Meanwhile, a poll watchdog call on the public to be vigilant over instances of Abuse of State Resources (ASR) during the campaign period.
In a statement, Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) executive director Ona Caritos urged the people to report the possible abuse on government resources by those who are running in the BSKE.
She said the public may submit their ASR reports through its website: https://www.lente.org.ph/report#report-form; email: lente.philippines@gmail.com.
They may also report such through the group’s hotline: 0920-266-0944.
***
At the same time, the LENTE official warned of a potential surge in ASR by incumbent officials.
"Incumbent officials use state resources for their electoral advantage, thus, affecting the standard of a level playing field in elections," she said.
Caritos reported that said such actions have been observed even prior to the start of the campaign period.
Among them, she added, is in one of the cities in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), where incumbent barangay officials, who are running in the forthcoming polls, were observed providing temporary shelters to their constituents with plans of converting the same into daycare centers.
LENTE said several welfare programs, such as Oplan Libreng Tuli, Free X-ray, and HIV testing, were also observed in one of the cities in South Cotabato, wherein local government officials promoted candidates they are supporting for the upcoming polls.
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