Bontoc SP, BFP execs urge biz registration; inspections scheduled

By Flora Mae Apos

BONTOC, Mountain Province- Unregistered business owners in this capital town were urged to register their business establishments to secure the business entity's authenticity as legal and paying taxes tax-status.
    This was discussed by the Sangguniang Bayan and Bureau of Fire Protection personnel during a meeting at the SB Session Hall of the Bontoc Municipal Capitol on May 29.
    To ensure a fire-free town, the Office of the Sangguniang Bayan convened for a conference with the BFP on fire safety precautions and inspections, including the registration of unregistered commercial premises, in this capital town. 
SFO3 Jade Guinyawan, deputy municipal fire marshal, said fire safety inspections are necessary to prevent future fires.
Fire safety assessments of all establishments are required. 
    According to FO3 Melodave Claire Khayad, chief community relations unit, the goal of fire safety inspection is to check their compliance with fire safety procedures to avoid additional fire occurrences.
    This involves examination of the building's wiring, fire safety equipment, fire extinguishers and fire escapes.
    The SB and BFP agreed to undertake the fire safety inspection for both registered and unregistered businesses. 

SB member Benedict Odsey II and SB members urged business and boarding house owners to register their business establishments.

 

 

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Baguio visitors mandated: Register in Visita platform

_{BAGUIO CITY -- The City Council approved on first reading a proposed ordinance mandating all non-Baguio residents, tourists, excursionists, pilgrims and same day visitors to register on the Baguio Visitors Information and Travel Assistance (VISITA) online application prior to or upon entering or attending identified tourism establishments or events or availing of tourism services.
    The proposed ordinance authored by Councilors Elmer Datuin, Vladimir Cayabas and Lilia Farinas, said there shall be mandatory registration for all non-Baguio residents entering the city as tourists, excursionists, pilgrims, and same day visitors to register with the Baguio VISITA online platform and secure a VISITA pass prior or upon entry to the city, particularly for overnight or event guests of accommodation establishments.
    These include hotels, resorts, tourist inns, apartels, pension houses, motels, home stay sites, eco lodges, services residences, condotels, transient lodging houses and other similar establishments.
    Required to register are attendees or participants of meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions activities and other organized social, business, educational, including government examinations or adventure or sport meets, events and gatherings held in public, private and commercial venues and passengers of provincial transport network vehicle services, tourist transport services and other public convenience plying to and from the city; participants of organized city tours, such as but not limited to tour joiners, tour packages and educational tours and field trips and visitors entering tourist attractions and sites, such as but not limited to open parks, gardens and tourist sites, museums and galleries, amusement and recreational facilities, wellness and sports facilities and shops.
    However, the ordinance urged but did not mandate guests and visitors of secondary tourism enterprises such as but not limited to restaurants and bars, department stores, gas stations and motor vehicle services, hospitals or shopping malls to register and secure visitor’s pass from the said platform.
    The ordinance stipulated that managers, organizers and operators of tourism activities, services, enterprises and venues shall check the registration of their guests, participants and/or visitors by inspection and validation either manually, visually or digitally of the issued visitor pass presented either in e-copy or hard copy form.
    The ordinance tasked the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO) to randomly check in plain view all vehicles carrying tourists, excursionists, pilgrims or same day visitors if passengers, including the driver are registered to VISITA with the required pass and require those who are not registered to register.
    Further, barangay officials are enjoined to monitor all tourism-oriented and tourism-related establishments and facilities in the performance of the aforesaid functions within their respective jurisdiction.
    The Baguio Tourism Council, the operator of the VISITA online platform, with  assistance of the City Tourism Office, shall provide accessibility and smooth operations of the platform and secure the data collected that shall only be used for authorized purposes and within the provisions of Republic Act (RA) 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012. -- Dexter A. See}

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Comelec sets deadline for political party registration

_{By Ferdinand Patinio} 

_{The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday reminded the public of the deadline for the filing of petitions for the registration of political parties and party Lists in connection with the 2025 National and Local Elections (NLE).
    In a statement, the poll body said political groups and organizations looking to participate in the next national polls have until Dec. 29, 2023 to register.
    “All groups intending to register as a political party, a coalition of political parties, or a national, regional or sectoral group or organization to participate in the Party-List System of Representation must ensure strict compliance with the guidelines set forth in Comelec Resolution No. 10673,” it said.
    The resolution provides guidelines on electronic filing, the conduct of hearings/investigations/inquiries via video conference, and service.
    Verified petitions will be accepted during regular working hours, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Mondays to Fridays, excluding holidays.
    Those interested may also inquire with the Office of the Clerk of the Commission via telephone numbers 02-8527-3002 or 02-8527-2770, or email atclerkofthecommission@comelec.gov.ph.
    The scheduled electoral exercise is a midterm elections. -- PNA}
 

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SIM registration deadline extended 90 days more

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. approved Tuesday the 90-day extension of the deadline for SIM registration, Malacañang's broadcasting arm RTVM announced on social media.
    "Failure to register within the given period of extension will result to limited SIM services from the telecommunication companies," RTVM said in a Facebook post.
    Malacañang's announcement came hours after Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said at the start of an inter-agency meeting on the Oriental Mindoro oil spill that the SIM registration deadline, supposedly set on April 26, was extended.
    "There is a lengthy extension," said Remulla, who attended the Cabinet meeting on SIM registration. "But most of the services that come with the cellphones that are not registered will be cut off with the telcos."
    "So there will be social media unavailability for those who do not register in the next 90 days," he added.
    Malacañang said that Marcos directed the Department of Information and Communications Technology to make an announcement regarding the deadline extension, but it has yet to do so on its social media accounts.
Republic Act No. 11934 or the SIM Registration Act provides that all existing SIM users must register within 180 days from the effectivity of the law.
    This can be extended by the Dept. of Information and Communications Technology by another 120 days.
    The law states that failure to register the SIMs within those periods will result in its automatic deactivation, which will only be reactivated after registration.
    Nothing in the law states that the government or telcos can limit access to social media if users do not register during the extension period.
    Sen. Grace Poe, who shepherded the passage of the SIM Registration Act at the Senate, welcomed the extension, saying the law was "not meant to punish legitimate SIM subscribers especially those at remote areas."
    "Both (the National Telecommunications Commission) and telcos must double their efforts in reaching out to subscribers in rural and remote areas. While a number of locations have been visited for remote registration, a lot more ground needs to be covered as key areas such as the Bangsamoro region have yet to be reached according to the data by NTC," Poe said in a statement.
    The announcement of the extension came on the eve of the original April 26 deadline of SIM registration, when less than 50% of the country’s total active 168 million SIMs have been registered which prompted calls from some sectors to extend the deadline for registration, if not to completely scrap it.
    Information and Communications Technology Secretary Ivan Uy was expected to make an announcement regarding the extension of the SIM registration deadline at a news conference in Malacañang later today, following a meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
    Prior to Tuesday, the DICT has stood pat on keeping the April 26 deadline, even though the SIM Registration Act allows the government to extend this for 120 days.
    The possibility of extending the deadline for SIM registration was raised Monday in a meeting between the DICT and telecommunications companies.
    The two largest telcos in the country, Globe Telecom and Smart Communications, have appealed to the government to extend the deadline for registration, which has been hampered by users’ lack of government-issued IDs.
    The SIM Registration Act was enacted with the goal of curbing crimes committed through text messages, particularly spam and scam texts which were rampant when the proposal was being deliberated in Congress.
    This drummed up public support for the law, even as civil society groups and some ICT experts warned that SIM registration might not at all be effective in reducing spam and scams as they pointed to other countries, like Singapore, where users continue to receive such messages. — with a report from Kristine Joy Patag

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DICT not rushing SIM registration extension

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is not hurrying to decide whether to extend the SIM (subscriber identity module) card registration beyond the April 26 deadline.
    Jocelle Batapa-Sigue, ICT undersecretary for industry development, told media  they want subscribers to register in the next few days within the deadline.
    “We want to encourage Filipinos to register during the last 12 days before deadline on April 26,” Sigue said.
However, Sigue gave assurance that the DICT was already holding meetings to discuss possible deadline extension.
    “Meetings are conducted to decide on the extension and ensure that it will really serve its purpose. As to whether there will be an extension, and how long the extension will still be decided in the coming days,” Sigue said.
    As of the last DICT update, the number of SIM card registrations has reached 66,220,334 last April 11, which is just 39.41 percent of the total SIM card subscribers at 168,977,773.
    Two of the Big 3 telcos in the country, Smart Communications Inc. and Globe Telecom Inc. have issued a call the other day to extend the April 26 deadline for SIM registration, as none of them have reached half of their user bases yet.
    Failure to register SIM cards before the deadline will result in deactivation, rendering them unusable for voice calls, text messaging, and mobile data services. This action is part of the government’s effort to improve national security and curb fraudulent activities such as scams and identity theft.
    However, the SIM Card Registration Law said the deadline was extendible by up to 120 days

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Ilocos officials told: Up SIM registration

By Leilanie Adriano 

LAOAG CITY – The Sangguniang Panlalawigan or provincial board of Ilocos Norte Monday asked the 21 towns and two cities of Ilocos Norte to speed up the SIM registration rollout, particularly in remote areas.
    “We need to reach out to the Barangays and help people to register their sim cards,” said provincial board member Giancarlo Angelo S. Crisostomo, chair of the committee on peace and order and the committee on transportation and communication, as he pushed Provincial Resolution No. 2023-02-107 asking all local government leaders to accelerate the implementation of the SIM Registration, and to ensure the April 26, 2023 deadline is met.
    Crisostomo said there is a need to increase the current pace of daily registration following reports that only 33,313,839 SIM cards have been registered or 19.71 percent of the total 168,977,773 existing subscribers, as of Feb. 16.
    Under the law, all existing and new subscribers are required to register their SIM cards until April 26 of this year. After the announced deadline, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is allowed to extend the registration period for another 120 days.
    End-user who fails to comply with the requirements for registration within the period prescribed shall result in the automatic deactivation of the SIM. -- PNA
 

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Motorcade starts Civil Registration Month in Bontoc

By Ligaya Akay, Christy Mae Che-es and Amp

BONTOC, Mountain Province- Activities in celebration of the 33rd Civil Registration Month will be set by the Bontoc local government through the Office of the Municipal Civil Registrar in partnership with the
Philippine Statistics Authority.
    Municipal Civil Registrar Valentina Domaoa bared this during Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council meeting Feb. 3 at the municipal capitol auditorium.
    Domaoa said the OMCR heading a motorcade on Feb. 7 to launch the month-long celebration.
    A civil registration quiz bee, poster and slogan making which will be
    Joined by students from Saint Vincent School and Mountain Province General Comprehensive High School will be conducted today Feb. 8.
    She added their office scheduled 3-day free registration and issuance
of birth, marriage, and death certificate Feb. 21-24.
    The schedules of barangays: Dalican, Mainit, Guina-ang, Maligcong on Feb. 21; Alab Oriente, Alab Proper, Balili, Gonogon on Feb. 22; Central Bontoc, Bontoc-Ili, Poblacion, Caluttit, Samoki on Feb. 23 and Talubin, Can-eo, Bayyo, Tocucan on Feb. 24.
 
 
 
 

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Server issues mar SIM card sign-up portals on 1st day

EDITORIAL

Server issues on telecommunication firms' portals for registration of subscriber identity module (SIM) cards marred the first day of mandatory registration on Tuesday, the Philippine News Agency reported.
    As early as 6:30 a.m., the registration link for Globe showed a "Bad gateway" prompt, asking subscribers to "try again later". Upon accessing it at about 10:30 a.m., the link takes the subscribers to the FAQ page.
    The PNA said it was able to access the Smart portal but getting through the link either took time to load or would not load at all.
    DITO subscribers can register through the DITO app.
    In the PNA Facebook page comments section, some of the subscribers trying to access the portals said: "Page not found on Smart website"; "Globe links not working at the meantime."
    Jayson Prado Robles, in the comment, said he registered as early as 4 a.m. for DITO and Globe and at about 5 a.m. for Smart and was able to register in all links.
    The telecom firms have assured that they are ready for the expected deluge of registrants and also vowed to improve their processes.
    In a radio interview over DZBB, Yoly Crisanto, Globe Group Chief Sustainability and Corporate Communications Officer, assured that their system can handle the influx of registrants as they continuously improve it.
    "We are ready for it. Robust naman 'yung system na ginagamit natin (Our system is robust)," she said.
    Few hours after Globe's registration site went live, Crisanto said the portal was taken down to adjust the system for a new requirement -- uploading a selfie.
    "I think meron silang gustong ayusin, may pinadagdag. Ngayon po kasi base dun sa kahapon na presscon ng ating government agencies kasama ang NTC and DICT nanghingi sila ng certain form of verification so ngayon kailangan tayo mag-upload ng selfie (I think they have to add some requirements. The NTC and DICT are now asking for a certain form of verification so the registrant would now have to upload a selfie)," Crisanto said.
Cathy Yang, PLDT and Smart Corporate Communications First Vice President and Group Head, also said their systems are ready for the influx of registrants.
    "All systems go na tayo sa SIM registration. It will only take three minutes to register," she said in a radio interview.
    Under the implementing rules and regulations of Republic Act 11934 also known as An Act Requiring the Registration of SIM Cards, mobile phone subscribers with prepaid SIM cards must register and verify their phone numbers with their respective public telecommunications companies 180 days from Dec. 27, 2022.
    After the extension period of 120 days, unregistered SIM cards will be deactivated.
    For postpaid subscribers, their data submitted to the service providers will only need to be verified.
    Meanwhile, SIM cards of foreign nationals visiting as tourists shall only be valid for 30 days. It may be extended upon submission of an approved visa extension.
    To register, subscribers should visit the portal of the telecom firms.
    For existing DITO Subscribers, register through https://dito.ph/RegisterDITO.
    For Smart prepaid, TNT and Smart Bro users, register through https://smart.com.ph/simreg.
    For Globe Mobile, TM and Home Prepaid WiFi users, register through https://new.globe.com.ph/simreg.
    The full name, date of birth, gender, and address of the end-user appearing in a valid government-issued identification document with photo such as passport, national ID, GSIS e-Card, digitized SSS ID, driver’s license, voter’s ID and senior citizen’s card among others, shall be required during registration.
    The new law is a first step to fend off text scammers while guaranteeing utmost respect to fundamental human rights.
    Authorities said any information obtained in the SIM registration will be treated with absolute confidentiality except in compliance with any law or court order authorizing the disclosure of personal information upon finding of probable cause. 
 

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Baguio opens 24/7 hotline for tourist assist

By Liza Agoot 

BAGUIO CITY – The City Tourism Office has opened official contact numbers that tourists can contact to verify the legitimacy of service and accommodation providers in this summer capital.
    Engr. Aloysius Mapalo, city tourism officer, on Tuesday said the 24/7 hotline (074) 446-2009 can be contacted to verify whether a person's transaction with a client is affiliated with a legitimate accommodation establishment (AE).
    "We will coordinate with their chosen AE," Mapalo said in a phone interview.
    Tourists may also call or text 0956-572-9097 (7 a.m. - 4 p.m.); 0956-572-9093 (2 p.m. -11 p.m.); 0956-572-9094 (10 p.m - 7 a.m.) to know if they are transacting with a fake or a legitimate service provider.
    The official also advised visitors that a list of accommodation establishments (AEs) can be checked on the online tourist information site visita.baguio.gov.ph.
    The call was made after another tourist lost P17,000 after paying in advance for an accommodation establishment and only to find out that it was a scam.
    Mapalo said most of these scams happen on social media.
    "While many legitimate businesses engage with their customers through social media, prudence and vigilance on unscrupulous entities must still be observed," he said.
    The city government had directed the Baguio City Police Office to investigate the specific incident brought to the attention of the city government.
    In an earlier press release of the Public Information Office-Baguio, the city tourism office publicized red flags that should guide the public in knowing that they ate transacting with an illegitimate service provider.
    He said that a too good to be true travel package that includes transport, accommodation, food, tours, and tickets that are unusually cheap may not be real.
    The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) earlier estimated that a regular domestic tourist in Baguio spends an average of P2,700 per day.
    A legitimate business must also have an official receipt.
    "This should be basic, always ask for copies of business permits and receipts that can be verifiable; the person you are talking with must be associated with the declared legal business, not just any random person declaring to be a representative without proof," the city's advisory said.
    The absence of an official public website or social media page can also be checked to verify.
    "Legitimate businesses will promote their services on public and well-recognized online platforms, usually with customer reviews and ratings; so do your research, google if you should," the advisory further said.
    Another red flag to watch out for is if a social media page of a purported establishment is newly created.
    "Not necessarily all new websites or accounts are illegal, but scammers have the propensity for deleting old accounts and then will create new accounts, using different names every time; so be very scrutinizing," said the advisory.
    It added that scammers usually do not show government-issued identification.
    Also, the declared address is non-existent but scammers will show fake photos of accommodations in a non-existing address.
    "Be very vigilant, always verify by googling or by asking those who know the place or contact the hotlines provided for your safety and prevent being scammed," Mapalo said. -- PNA
 

 

 

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Wider Cordi registration for marginalized sector pushed

By Aldwin Quitasol

BAGUIO CITY — The local government here and the Philippine Statistics Authority Cordillera are set to ink a memorandum of agreement in line with project Philsys Birth Registration Assistance Project for the city.
    Local Civil Registrar Luz Perez said the program aims to increase civil registration in marginalized communities, particularly those belonging to the indigenous peoples and the poorest sector.
    The aims to enhance intensified campaign in improving civil registration aligned with the three goals of the civil registration and vital statistics decade which are universal civil registration of births, deaths and other vital events.
    It includes all individuals with legal documentation to claim identity, civil status, and ensuring rights and accurate, complete and timely vital registration produced and disseminated.
    The project also aims to register those unregistered births and other civil registry documents, especially IP and the poorest sector covering all the cities and municipalities in the province and verify from the PSA civil registry system database the existence of birth and other civil registry records to avoid double or multiple registration through omnibus registration.
    It includes implementation of the Philippine Registry Information system in the conduct of mobile registration in the city for a period of one year from the data of MoA signing and register the Phil ID of the birth registrants.
    “We are targeting to conduct the mobile registration starting this third quarter of this year. We will be in close coordination with the barangays in carrying out this project,” Perez stressed.
    She pointed out that the local government can still do better and efforts should continue to strengthen the country’s civil registration and vital statistics systems to meet the goal of universal registration by 2024 — that at least 99.5 percent of all Filipinos should have their birth registered and shall be provided with the legal documentation through the issuance of the birth certificate.

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Bontoc local registry offers free issuance of documents Feb 22-24

By Alpine Killa- Malwagay

BONTOC, Mountain Province – The Bontoc local government through its Municipal Civil Registrar Office (MCRO) will be issuing copies of the civil registry documents for free at scheduled dates. 
    According to Municipal Civil Registrar Valentina Domaoa, documents that will be issued for free by the MCRO include Local Birth Certificates, Marriage Certificates, and Death Certificates. 
    Free issuance of civil registry documents to the constituents of the ALBAGO Cluster (Barangays Alab Oriente, Alab Proper, Balili and Gonogon) will be on February 22, 2022; the Upland Cluster (Barangays Dalican, Guina-ang, Maligcong, and Mainit) will be on February 23, 2022; and the Riverside ((Barangays Bayyo, Caneo, Talubin, and Tocucan) and Central Cluster (Barangays Bontoc Ili, Caluttit, Poblacion and Samoki) will be on February 24, 2022.
    Interested individuals who would like to avail of the free issuance of local Birth Certificates, Marriage Certificates, and Death Certificates are advised to visit the MCRO at the scheduled dates. Also, clients are advised to bring two valid IDs and adhere to health protocols. The MCRO is located at the Left Wing, First Floor of the Bontoc Municipal Capitol and is open from 8:00 in the morning to 5:00 in the afternoon. 
    Domaoa clarified that those who request for the said documents before or after the scheduled dates will pay the regular fees. 
    In a separate interview with Mayor Franklin Odsey, he encouraged the public to take advantage of the free issuance of local civil documents that may be used in applying for a job, enrolling in school, or for one’s files. 
    “The MCRO has allotted three working days to accommodate as many clients as possible,” the mayor added.
    The issuance of local civil registry documents for free is an activity of the Bontoc LGU through the MCRO in celebration of the Civil Registration Month February of every year. The theme for this year’s 32nd Civil Registration Month is “Improving Civil Registration and Vital Statictics through Digital Transformation”.
    Proclamation 682 declares the month of February of every year as Civil Registration Month affirmed by former President Corazon C. Aquino on the 28th of January 1991.
 

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