Christmas Ed Kapangan slated December 10 -11

By Joseph B Zambrano

KAPANGAN, Benguet -- The annual Christmas Ed Kapangan is scheduled this year on Dec. 10 to 11 to promote eco- tourism and the rich culture and tradition of this municipality.

The activity is ideal for families who are taking advantage of the holiday season where relatives and friends bond together.

It includes a trip to the various tourist destinations where one can stay for overnight camping and watch cultural presentation and experience the beauty of nature.

Kapangan Mayor Robert Canuto said that the first leg will be a guided tour to the more than two hectares of 56 different varieties of anthurium in a forest under natural shade of trees.

Anthurium is the One Town One Product (OTOP) of the municipality.

There will be a hike to Bulalakaomountain to view the majestic beauty of the municipality and for photos.

One can also experience overnight camping at the Balacbac Elementary School grounds mini park overlooking the DakiwaganMouintain where the image of Santa Claus can be seen.

Visitors will witness a cañao and iwik in a wat-wat dinner, bonfire with cultural presentation, grand march at night time and a Christmas exchange of gifts.

The second day will start with a “hataw” to warm up campers for another day of exciting activities.

A trek to the Obellen rice terraces to witness and participate in the pounding of rice for “chu-om,” then spelunking to Bulalakao cave, one the beautiful caves of Kapangan.

One can also swim with Kapangan muscle men led by international body builder Cesar Lokines and fish the indigenous way using” bani-it” and “gobo” at the Amburayan River.

A “kamayan” lunch highlights activities of the annual event which continues to draw visitors from here and abroad.

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Pine tree festival set December 17

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The contributions of the Benguet pine tree (Pinusinsularis) to the region will be recognized on Dec. 17 – 18 at the Benguet State University gyms and grounds and at the Puguis Communal Forest.

Dubbed the First Cordillera Pine Tree Festival, the occasion will give tribute to the economic, environmental and socio-cultural contributions of the pine tree to the six provinces and two cities in the region.

The Festival will showcase seminar/symposia on environmental laws, indigenous forestry conservation practices, state of pine forests in the region and will cap it with a competition of provincial winners in essay, song, poem, photography, school band, cultural dances and on-the-spot painting contests.

A competition of best live Christmas trees, pine seedlings, four-needled pine tree fascicles, schools that have planted the most pine trees and schools with the oldest pine trees will also be held for local schools of La Trinidad.

There shall be an eco-trekking and ecoducation at the Long Communal Forest, bike runs, family eco-runs.

A mountain climb at Mount Calawitan is also scheduled. Exhibit and sales booths will feature environmentally safe-enterprises wil be held at the BSU gyms.

A canao and a night concert as well as a bonfire will add to the Festival highlights.

The invited guest speaker, Sec. Manuel AranetaRoxas 11 of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) will lead a tree planting and the planting of a “Pine Tree Festival Tree” at the BSU grounds.

Organized and implemented by the Cordillera Ecological Center headed by Dr. Michael A. Bengwayan, the Festival includes participants from the six provinces and two cities.

The goal of the activity is to widen public support for the planting and caring of pine trees as well widening participation in the propagation, conservation and cultural management of pine forests.

The Festival is being funded by environmental volunteers led by the Facebook environmental group A Tree A Day which has 3,000 members in 37 countries. -- Cordillera Ecological Center Media Service

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Bontoc SVS alumni attend centennial

By Mark Preston Lopez and Letty F. Dacawe

BONTOC, Mountain Province -- Proud alumni of Saint Vincent’s School’s, one of the first Catholic schools in the country celebrated its centennial Oct. 23 to 30 with people from all walks of life in different parts of the world coming home home to attend the event.

Observers said alumni visited various establishments like folk houses, restaurants, the Chico River and Mainit Hot Spring resorts for batch gatherings.

According to the SVS alumni president PaoTumapang, the colorful and overwhelming attendance of the alumni was worth recognizing because they also wanted to experience a “different Bontoc” which has become urbanized over the last five years. More folk houses and karaoke dens, more hotels, restaurants, snack houses and coffee shops and even the increasing number of commercial establishments were manifestations of a progressing Bontoc which SVS alumni catered to not only for food and drinks but to reminisce memories.

Rep. Maximo B. Dalog who was one of the honored guests during the Am-Among (Alumni Day) said, “The alumni homecoming was very organized and well attended.”
Gov. Leonard G. Mayaen in his welcome address was equally astounded with the display of different colors from uniforms of each class.

He was impressed to see new faces who came from different parts of the country and the world.

SVES principal Christopher Che-es said he was awed with the outcome of the event. “We started the event with a bang and we ended with a big bang and so I thank everyone who has been a part in the success of this momentous event in the history of our school.”

He was not only referring to the fireworks display during the opening night (Coronation of Royalties) and the culmination (Alumni Night) but also with the surprising outcome of the events from day one to the culmination.

The chairman of the steering vommittee Rev. Fr. John Habawel, SVES Principal Chees, SVHS principal Julian Chumacog and the alumni president Tumapang received messages of appreciation from i-fontoks not only in this capital town but from the different parts of the world through popular social networking sites like the Facebook, emails, chats, and in its websites www.svsbontoc.com and www.svsbntoc.tk .

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Christmas in the air

EDITORIAL

The yuletide season in just around the corner with radio stations playing Christmas carols, but then, it seems, people feel lonely and eager at the same time in welcoming the birth of Jesus Christ.

The loneliness emanates from bleak economic times. People are wondering where to get the goodies for noche Buena. This early, shrewd entrepreneurs are trying to make business ,through irregular means, out of a holy periodwherein all things good and holy should be the norm.

They are even selling substandard items like Christmas lights and firecrackers which have been known to have started fires and rendered many a family homeless.

Government authorities are advising the public to have these items tested first before these are draped or exploded. But we wonder where such tests could be done. Where are representatives of the Bureau of Product Standards, supposedly the agency in charge of this?

Toys, whether cheap or expensive have also been known to cause harm to children due to their toxic elements. People want value for their money like in buying things for the yuletide season, but then, such products should be safe for use or consumption, otherwise, their health of lives could be compromised.

Meanwhile, criminal elements, those in government too, according to reports, are up and about earning money through illegal means to enjoy the season like going to expensive vacation sites like Boracay.

For the moneyed, it is another season to enjoy “blessings.” For the poor, it is another season to bear with hard times. Life had never been fair, even during the Christmas Season. Call it irony.

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'Rotten tomatoes' in media and jueteng etc

BEHIND THE SCENES
Alfred P. Dizon

President Aquino has accused some members of the media “rotten tomatoes” for reporting on his latest dates, his knowledge of computer games, and his belief in Santa Claus.

The President said he gets irritated by some members of the media “who have forgotten that their main responsibility is to expose truth and not just guess or concoct news.”

The President stressed this point in his speech during the 37th conference of the KapisananngmgaBrodkasterngPilipinasat the Clark Freeport in Pampanga Nov. 9.

“Yes, there are times when the public prefers exaggerated news and juicy details – on who is my latest date, how I knew the meaning of DOTA (computer game), if I believe in Santa Claus,” he said.“I admit that these just make me smile. Perhaps this is how our culture is.”

Aquino hit “rotten tomatoes” in the media and called on the KBP and other media entities to guard their ranks.“Filipinos were victorious in restoring democracy in our country (from the Marcos dictatorship) and since then, the KBP has been unrelenting in ensuring that Juan de la Cruz would never again be kept in ignorance and fed with lies.”

“Yet, we must admit that the media industry is not perfect and like any other institutions with power and influence, also has rotten tomatoes which unfortunately have mixed with the rest,” he said.
***
Aquino described these “rotten tomatoes” as “those who extort in exchange for savory headlines, those who twist news to favor a few, those who spread baseless gossips and lies just to divert the focus of the people away from the truth.”

“If truth and concern for the country is the measure of public service, then careful scrutiny for details and credibility must be the measure for your profession,” he said.

Everything P-Noy said is true. But then, it should be the government which should start first being the model of things good and uncorrupted.Newsmen usually don’t write or talk about certain issues if they don’t smell something rotten about these. It is bad news that sells and where there is smoke, there is fire, as an old adage goes.

And bad news, it turns out, are usually true like those on corruption and unsavory lifestyles of those in government.
***
Take the case of jueteng. Why can’t P-Noy categorically order those in government particularly the Philippine National Police and utter these magic words: “Stop jueteng or lose your job” or to whoever is responsible like the Department of Interior and Local Government in stopping the menace.

If he will do this, my bubwit says, the illegal numbers game will suddenly and magically stop. Believe me when I say this, my bubwit adds.

A know a police official, who said he really wanted to stop jueteng in his turf. He admitted he, “felt the heat from higher ups,” those who wanted him to go slow on his antigambling drive.

During the time of Sen. PanfiloLacson as PNP chief, jueteng stopped as he made sure it would stop. Can’t new PNP chief NicanorBartolome do the same? My bubwit says, he doubts, unless P-Noy shows and tells him he is dead serious in stopping the favorite game of the masa of this blighted republic.

To date, P-Noy never made a dramatic order like “Patigilin and wangwang” to highlight his seriousness in stopping the illegal numbers game – reason why corrupt PNP officials and those in other government posts are still enjoying happy days, raking in millions of protection money, according to informants.
***
And why is the controversial Puno’tDulo, who had been linked to jueteng still holding this top Department of Interior and Local Government post?

Media members have admitted some of them belong to this “protection mafia” – the “rotten tomatoes” according to P-Noy.But then, there would be no “rotten tomatoes” in the media who accept payola to maintain their silence over illegal gambling ifthere is no jueteng in the first place.
***
Government officials like P-Noy have all the right to accuse people particularly the media of being “rotten tomatoes,” but they should know that if they can dish it out, they should know how to take it.After all, people are supposed to be presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

The silence of those in government and even the media on the prevalence of jueteng, for one, is testimony that “rotten tomatoes,” no matter how smelly and unsavory, are sweet to those who partake of the forbidden fruit.

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Dole-out or fall-out?

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Plugging a special kid’s bleeding

BENCHWARMER
Ramon S. Dacawi

When his second of five children was diagnosed for cerebral palsy shortly after birth, Famorca Bannog, a laborer from Banaue, Ifugao, knew there was nothing much he could do except to raise the kid the best he and his wife Shirley could.

That’s what the couple did, and Frederick grew within his limited givens, until he turned 14 this year. Until last September, three days after the kid’s grandmother, Emma, 59, was brought home by his dad from 26 days hospital confinement due to a stroke.

That was when Frederick himself was rushed to the provincial hospital in Lagawe and, last Oct. 19, transferred to the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center. The signs were abdominal distension or sensation of elevated pressure on his stomach; and melena, referring to black feces, a sign of internal bleeding.

The diagnosis was too complicated and devastating for the couple: esophageal varices or dilated veins in the lower esophagus that trigger bleeding; duodenitis or inflammation of the first section of the small intestine.

Doctors recommended ligation or tying off three blood vessels using an elastic material to stop bleeding.

Until last Thursday, the medical procedure was not done because of the prohibitive cost of the material estimated at P54,000 for the total process.

As his condition stabilized with regular medications, Frederick was released from hospital confinement last Thursday. He’s now resting in a relative’s home in Virac, Itogon, Benguet, waiting for his parents to raise the amount needed for the banding material to check the abdominal hemorrhage.

His family has been financial drained – first by the treatment of his grandmother and then by his own medical needs.

“Awan mettent ia gpautang,” his father said last Friday, meaning he had no one to turn to for a loan. “No mabalin, isurat mo laengen ti kasasaad mi ken ti anakko, ta barbareng adda tumulong kadagiti makabasa (If it’s all right, kindly write on our situation with my boy, hoping there will be help from some of those who will read it).”

Famorca and his wife Shirley left their four other kids with relatives in Bocos, Banaue, Ifugao, to be with their ailing boy. Mark Glenn, the eldest at 16, is in senior high school; Froilan, 12, and Lovely, 10, are both in the sixth grade, and Famorca Jr., 6, is in grade 1.

People who may be able to share any amount to plug the hemorrhage may ring up Famorca’s cellphone number: 09169956368.

As the father’s appeal was being written, the target amount for the cost of the elastic bands was whittled down to P53,000.

A woman employee at city hall who refused to be identified advised that the two P500 bills she earlier turned over to this writer be the starting fund for Frederick.

It’s a start. (e-mail: mondaxbench@yahoo.com for comments.)

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Magalong new management styles / SM’s private road

LETTERS FROM THE AGNO
March L. Fianza

Public dialogues have now become literally “environment-friendly.” In Abra, newly installed Cordillera police regional director Chief Supt. Benjamin BanezMagalong holds a meeting with the province’s police support groups and 27 police chiefs, representing the province’s 27 towns under a mango tree.

It appeared to me like an innovation on his part… and an improvement for the PNP.

He troops the line of policemen with Sr. Supt. Roberto Soriano and Abra police director Sr. Supt. Amando Segundo Lagiwid.

After talking with each police chief one after the other, he asks everybody to feel at ease. Then the young police Chief Supt. Magalong who was raised and grew up in Baguio opens his short and punctuated talk saying “Abra is a memorable place for me.”

“I was wounded here,” he tells his co-policemen, relating to them that he was first assigned in the province in 1982 to 1984.

“We suffered a lot of losses in Abra,” he tells them. And why is that? He says, it was because at that time, there was a “failure in community relations.”

I listened at the same time imagined the situation in the 80s. True, the Philippine Constabulary or PC under the stewardship of Gen. Fabian Ver were partly described as the “aggressors” and the NPA had better relations with the barrios because they were the “Nice People Around.”

Magalong then proceeds to convince his flock to “go back to the people and win their hearts.” He asks them to engage with the community. “Talk to people upon coming out from the house in the morning.”

Police work is community-oriented, he tells them, and describes the job in two short phrases: “Think community, think people.
***
In the Q & A portion of the dialogue with an Abra audience composed of the youth, teachers of several schools in Bangued, parents and some from the private sector; someone asks what the police are doing about jueteng and illegal gambling.

A woman complains that jueteng in Abra has really become an incurable “pain in the neck” for family members.

She relates a story that a mother had to deduct a few pesos from her kid’s baon to school, hoping against hope that she might secure hundreds of pesos more just by betting a few pesos on jueteng.

“Anak, buludekpy ta kwartam ta itayaktijueteng ta umadu ta agbalinngatawsan-tawsan.” With such an assurance coming from parents, what can stop a kid from doing the same – believing that a few pesos will multiply a thousand folds in jueteng?

More questions about jueteng are raised which makes him say that it is very clear to him that “people in Abra abhor jueteng.”

Magalong along with Sr. Supt. Joseph C. Adnol engages his Abra audience more, reveals his cell phone number and asks them to send him text messages or call him about their problems on police matters.

“I may not be able to reply immediately but I promise to get back to you,” he assures them. Then he quips: “Yan angnumerongtayaanninyosajueteng.” Will Chief Supt. Magalong’s gambit be an innovation in police management? Let us hope so.
***
In an attempt to improve the lives of his constituents, a local chief executive introduces innovations that are unfamiliar and unpopular. The move seems to be okay as it has not spent or wasted additional money from peoples’ taxes. The next thing the mayor finds out is that he is being sued in court for graft.

After all, what they were saying about the “many ways to skin a cat” was wrong. There is only one way – follow the rules and procedures.

Perhaps those who have wanted to dissect and improve the Philippine Constitution because they are caught in a corner are correct after all. I am certain that hundreds, maybe thousands of local politicians, lawmakers and ordinary citizens like us want to do things but cannot because such moves are not allowed by the Constitution.

As this piece is being written, the Supreme Court is being plagued with hundreds of cases that question the constitutionality of this and that.

On several occasions too, we have seen special agreements being resorted to by and between local government units and government line agencies because these are the only ways by which they can move. However, nothing is permanent.

There has to be some changes and if there is need for constitutional amendments, so be it. In fact the American Constitution that was adopted in 1787 has been amended 27 times as compared to the Philippine constitution that has been revised for only seven times since its first appearance in 1897.

In short, we are limited by the rules. New LGU managers with new management styles find out that they are not flexible with the present set up. They are afraid to move for fear of being charged with graft.

But the world is changing fast and people living on it are hungry for new management styles that match with their modern ways of surviving. Now, if rules cannot change easily, there must be some other way – minus the graft cases, of course.
***
“Apayngay, diba ti road going to SM are all city roads? We question why is SM management only allows taxicabs to enter the complex. Apayngayngaiti jeep ketsaanngamabalinketada met itipasahero a sumang-at ngamapaniti SM. This is purely discrimination by the traffic planners against the jeepneys,” transport head DionyItliong laments.

The transport group is set to meet with TTMC to discuss the improvement of the traffic scheme. Itliongsaid, this in preparation for the influx of tourists in Baguio during the Christmas season. He said he has talked with the SM a management regarding his concern but no action was ever made.

Itliong further revealed that this recommendation to re-study the SM traffic system was also the recommendation of transport officials who often came up to the city. The present system is no longer suited once a heavy volume of motorists come to Baguio, Itliong said.

I say, the plan to re-study the traffic scheme is long-overdue. If I were with the transport sector, I would file a case against those responsible for allotting public roads to become the private road of SM. In fact any private citizen can do that.

At the intersection beside the DILG compound, you will not fail to see a road sign in the middle of the road that says “TO SM ONLY.” Who says a city government can allow a public road to become the private driveway of a private entity?

Truth is, not only is the traffic design running on expired experimental basis – even the city is being run on experimental basis, and we have allowed our city officials to make us their Guinea pigs. – marchfianza777@yahoo.com

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Radio Sagada as ‘voice of the people’

HAPPY WEEKEND
Gina Dizon
(First of two parts)

SAGADA, Mountain Province -- Similar messages reminded Radio Sagada to be a community radio, voice of the people, practice grassroots journalism, move for social change and empowerment among other similar messages delivered by partners and guests during the launching of Radio Sagada Nov. 11,2011 here.

A day so fitting for launching the community radio, 11-11-11 according to numerology means an opportunity to “see the grey areas that lie between,” and get people closer to others, drawing in friendship and caring.

Supporting partners and institutions who helped Radio Sagada to what it is now instilled in their messages for the radio station to go beyond the launching and serve as a voice of empowerment of the community.

Representatives who delivered their strong messages of grassroots journalism were radio license holder National Council of Churches in the Philippines, project donor-partner Philippine Miserior Project Partners, project holder Northern Media Information Network, NorMin network Center for Development Programs in the Cordillera (CDPC), and Kodao Productions.

NorMin chairperson Kathleen Okubo called on Radio Sagada to establish milestones in grassroots journalism where the media network airs stories of the people and uphold peoples communication rights.

Special guest Swiss national Bianca Miglioretto, community radio activist and member of ISIS- International exhorted Radio Sagada should serve as the voice of the people as it belongs to the people.

Women’s rights activist, Bianca enjoined volunteer broadcasters to host women’s health, women’s culture, women’s news, and other women’s programs for Radio Sagada.

Miglioretto also served as consultant for Northern Media Information Network and helped in the conceptualization of the proposal which now established Radio Sagada along with NorMin executive director Jun Verzola and then CDPC research and advocacy officer Mary Carling, now radio Sagada's station manager. Said proposal was forwarded to the Catholic Bishops of Germany-based Miserior granted for a three year program.

Radio Sagada started its broadcast test June this year 2011 after its transmitter was finally hooked up with the relay tower of SMART telecommunications located at Mt Ampakaw overlooking the towns of Besao, Ilocos, Bauko, Sabangan, and Tadian.

Due recognition goes to Radio Sagada Media Network member of the board of directors Tom Killip for negotiating with SMART and eventually the radio hooking up the radio transmitter, after failed attempts for quite some time.

Radio Sagada Media Network chairman of the Management Board Steve Dagacan in his message especially recognized the volunteers who made Radio Sagada actively operating to what it is now.

Initial talk programs by volunteers started late July including this writer hosting the program ‘Gag-ay di Umili’ aired every 10-11 a.m. of Wednesdays and Fridays. The program does commentaries on news and issues of the week be this political, economic or cultural and spiritual; and interviews with persons having knowledge on particular topics including Vice Mayor Richard Yodong and councilor Francis Kilongan on legislative matters; president Carol Balisong of Sumyaan and their remarkable program on sharing gifts as swine raising, DILG officer Edison Baddal on local governance and autonomy; and Rev PrinzelBalitog about the soul and All Souls Day.

Marcelo Daweg for the Cordillera Peoples Alliance hosts the program ‘Tangguyob’ aired every Saturday from 10-11 a.m. Marcelo talks about political and social issues leaning on the militant nature of CPA. After the CPA program comes in Sagada Mayor Eduardo Latawan’s secretary Robert Pangod who airs updates from the local government unit of Sagada every 11-12 Saturdays.

Agricultural technician Aida Abeya with the agricultural unit of the LGU comes in every Thursdays 10-11 a.m. every Thursday with her program ‘FITS on the Air’. FITS meaning Farmers Information Technology Services tells information on organic farming, climate change, tips on farming and other related information. MsAbeya just signed up for another one hour program every 1 to 2 p.m. on Tuesdays.

Patrick Pooten, a former announcer with BomboRadyo and currently principal of Bangaan National High School in his education program every 4-5 p.m. Saturdays, talks about education issues including child trafficking and school rules and regulations.

Environmentalist Jed Angway who also chairs the Sagada Solid Waste Association talks about solid waste management every 11-12 Wednesdays and does his program with station manager Mary Carling who goes with her radio name ‘MaCarl’.

By September, Montanosa Research and Development Center (MRDC), a member of the Board of Trustees of RadioSagada registered its program ‘Timekti Mannalon’ hosted by its staff every 12-1 pm Mondays. Special topics discussed by its staff are aired including features on agricultural communities where MRDC reach out its services on sustainable agriculture and appropriate technology through its 32 years of existence in marginalized areas in the Cordillera in Abra, Kalinga, Ifugao and Mountain Province.

From here, it is hoped that MRDC’s best practices learned through years be replicated and learned as these are aired. For one, the 17 year old microhydro power plant in Ngibat Kalinga featured the significance of a unified community in its early programs by Luis Edpis, Liason officer of MRDC with the Ngibat Farmers Association and this writer who also works currently with MRDC.

Other programs came in namely that on ‘Moral Recovery’ by Ray Tawaren of the Free Believers religious sect aired every 1-2 p.m. Wednesdays where hosts talk about relevant laws and spiritual messages and values from the Holy Book .

Representative from the office of Mountain Province Rep. MaximoDalog and Gov. Leonard Mayaen in the person of provincial administrator Franklin Odsey especially acknowledged broadcasts done in the vernacular.

‘Kotimya Eta on Da Air’ began airing every 4-5 on Sundays by this writer with her Igorot name ‘Masinnay’ along with ‘Gana-ing’, Igorot name of Maritess Abad-Matulay, and volunteer ‘Konyap’, Daisy Omaweng’s native name. ‘KyE on da Air’ is borrowed from the Yahoo email group ‘Kotimya Eta’ composed of members from the Kankanaey tribe of western Mountain Province who talk about anything and come up eventually with grains of truth and wisdom extracted from talks along the course of discussion. KyE which has slept for sometime is programmed to be transferred 11-12 o’clock Fridays.

‘KyE on Da Air’ among other topics spoken in the Kankanaey language, attempts to involve listeners on sharing Kankanaey terms from their own places with Radio Sagada reaching as far as Cervantes, Ilocos Sur where some Kankanaey are found, and in the fringes between Besao and Ilocos Sur and Besao and Tubo Abra; and Bauko, some parts of Tadian, Sabangan, and Bontoc.

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New Cordi PNP chief orders:Stop jueteng

BAGUIO CITY – New Cordillera regional police director Benjamin Magalong has ordered his men to go on an all-out drive against illegal gambling like jueteng in the region.

“I have issued a written directive to this effect (against illegal gambling), he told a press conference at the Philippine Information Agency regional office here Thursday.

To date illegal jueteng operations were still being conducted by “lords” of the illegal numbers game at press time, according to informants.

Identified areas where jueteng was prevalent included Baguio, the provinces of Abra and Kalinga, and the towns of La Trinidad, Itogon. Tuba, Tublay, Mankayan and Buguias in Benguet.

In La Trinidad, draws were reportedly being held at a woodworks establishment beside a gasoline station along km 3 of the Halsema Highway.

Sources said police have reportedly ignored information about the drawing area in the past from concerned sectors.

In Baguio, jueteng draws have reportedly increased from three to four draws daily with bets being taken from nearby Benguet towns like Itogon and Tuba.

In Mankayan and Buguias, jueteng had reportedly been unhampered despite reports about the illegal numbers game in the two mining and vegetable towns respectively.

Concerned residents and cause-oriented groups have been assailing the police under the former regional police command saying its garnering a citation for “best regional police command” nationwide was a farce since illegal gambling had not been curbed or stopped in the Cordillera but became worse.

They said they expected the new police command under Chief Supt. Magalong to be serious in stopping illegal gambling aside from addressing other crimes. -- AD

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Cops face blank wall on P4.5 M pawnshop rob

By Christian D. Supnad

VIGAN CITY, Ilocos Sur- Police are still facing a blank wall on the P4.5-M pawnshop robbery that was carried out by unidentified thieves in the business center of Quezon Ave., this city.

A police report said the suspects carted away at least P4.5 million worth of assorted jewelries and cash money inside the Tambunting Pawnshop, a well-known pawnshop along Quezon Avenue in Vigan City last Wednesday.

Based on investigation, Chief Insp. Ernesto Navarro, Vigan chief of police, said at about 9 a.m. last Wednesday, pawnshop manager VilmaGascon opened the esatablishment and found out about the robbery as the moneu was missing.

The robbery shocked the business group in the city since Vigan has been dubbed as one of the most safety areas for business in the region.

Navarro theorized the robbers gained entry inside the pawnshop through a hole made by the suspects at the concrete flooring of the business building raising eyebrows among newsmen since the area is the business center of Vigan where aside from policemen, a number of watchmen under the Vigan City patrol the Quezon Ave, regularly.

The police chief said that the modus operandi of the suspects whom he called Minors is to dig up their entry point through underground, adding the robbers might be the same who were responsible in a series of robbery incidents in IlocosNorte, Candon City in IlocosSut and and San Fernando City in La Union.

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Former Ilocos town mayor's son killed

SAN NICOLAS, Ilocos Norte – The son of a former mayor of this town was gunned down here before dawn Oct. 31.

Chief Insp. LelanBenigno said Ashley Madamba, 45, of Barangay San Agustin and son of former mayor Benjamin Madamba suffered gunshot wounds in the face and the right side of his body from a 9mm caliber handgun.

Investigation showed that the victim, who works part time as a tricycle driver, had three male passengers before he was found dead by policemen at around 2 a.m.

Residents reported hearing gunshots in the area where the young Madamba was slain.

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Nolcom chief cites gov for helping slain NPAs

By Maritess B. Benas

TINEG, Abra -- Major Gen.Jessie D. Dellosa, Commander of the Northern Luzon Command has cited the provincial governor for helping New People’s Army rebels who were killed in a recent encounter in Barangay Caganayan here.

Dellosa also congratulated the soldiers of the 503rd Infantry Brigade headed by Col. Eliseo C. Posadas, for their successful operation against NPA last Oct. 10, which resulted to the killing of eight rebels and one soldier.

He also urged troops to continue the Bayanihan system in convincing the armed group to lay down their arms to prevent further bloodshed and instead participate in attainment of peace and development in the province.

In a meeting with Gov. Eustaquio P. Bersamin, Dellosa thanked him for his assistance to the Army and also for shouldering the funeral and burial expenses of NPAs who were killed in the Oct. 10 encounter.

The governor also handled the hospitalization and medical bills of the captured NPA, identified as Alex Moraflora.

Dellosa reassured the governor of the commitment of the AFP in assisting the province of Abra in its quest for peace and development in line with the national government’s program.

Bersamin, on the other hand, thanked the AFP for helping communities of the province especially hinterlands through its campaign plan “Bayanihan” wherein the local residents were felt presence of the government with the participation of local government units and national agencies.

Meanwhile, Posadas briefed Dellosa on the progress of the Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Committee composed of the AFP and the Philippine National Police in the province where significant results were made against criminalities and other lawless elements as well as its contribution to the Internal Security Operations.

Posadas also informed Dellosa of the honors accorded by the Provincial Peace and Order Council to operating troops of 41st IB in recognition for the successful operation against the NPAs in Tineg.

Dellosa also visited the alternate vommand post of 41st IB in Lagangilang under the command of Lt. Col. Noel T. Baluyan, and the headquarters of 50th IB in Manabo under the command of Lt. Col. Nolie A. Anquillano.

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Diarrhea downs 116 folks in Cagayan

By Charlie Lagasca

BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya– More residents have been downed by diarrhea, believed to have been caused by contaminated drinking water, since last month in a village in Cagayan.

From 116 diarrhea patients monitored last month in Gonzaga town’s Barangay Santa Maria, 57 more cases have been added.

Dr. Lowie Sunico, the town’s health officer, said though the outbreak has been contained as preventive measures have been undertaken.

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P50,000 per person: OPAPP funds due for release to Kalinga rebs

By Larry Lopez

TABUK, Kalinga- - The Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office said the release of the livelihood assistance from the Office of Presidential Adviser on Peace Process to former rebels in Kalinga would be made last quarter of this year.

Program coordinator Eusebia Haddac of the PSWDO said because of some problems in requirements that caused delay, she volunteered to perform additional work in the compliance of preliminary interrogation reports (PIR) on rebel returnee beneficiaries to facilitate release of their financial aids.

The OPAPP, which is now under scrutiny by other government branches like the Senate, reportedly allowed the submission of PIRs in place of earlier submitted Joint Validation and Authentication Committee Certifications, which are difficult to locate at the head office.

There are 15 former rebels in the province who are target beneficiaries under the Social Integration Program (SIP) of the previous administration and Local Reintegration Program under the Aquino administration.

Each beneficiary is entitled to a maximum financial assistance of P50,000 from OPAPP based on the project proposal the returnee submitted.

Haddac disclosed OPAPP is ready to release the assistance of three applicants, but she said the province appealed that releases would just be made at the same time considering it is not easy to be calling every beneficiary to come to the center and claim .

Some of the beneficiaries have already relocated to other provinces but they were not excluded from the list, Haddac said.

She explained proper coordination is made with OPAPP about their case and release of their assistance will be channeled to proper agencies in their present locations.

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Rape cases prevalent: ‘Shameful crimes’ against children up in Mt Province

By Angel Baybay

BONTOC, Mountain Province – “Shamefiul crimes” against children have increased in the province alarming officials and prompting Gov. Leonard Mayaen to urge barangay officials to prioritize child-friendly programs and protect them from abuse.

“Increased cases of abuse against children does not speak well of a province professing a unique culture centered on respect to children and elders,” the governor said.

From January to August this year, at least 20 cases of sexual abuse against children – 12 rape, 1 incestuous rape, 2 attempted rape, and 5 acts of lasciviousness cases were documented by the Provincial Police Office.

There were also five instances of physical abuse.

To deter the commission of these shameful crimes, the governor urged officials not to amicably settle cases of sexual abuse even as he extended free services of the Provincial Legal Office to victims. “As a lawyer by profession, I know how much it would take to litigate a case in court but for these specific cases, we should let the law to take its course,” the governor stressed.

Mayaen added that making the perpetrators answer the consequences of their act would also discourage the commission of other crimes. “This will also arrest the commission of other spiteful crimes because I do not believe that a man would ever think of sexually abusing his daughter or any other child if he is not using drugs,” he said.

The governor likewise called on the officials to help stop cases of child labor. Reports have it that many children quit school in their dream of instant material wealth. Many of these children are found in small scale mining areas, at the quarry sites along the Chico River, and at the vegetable farms in upper Bauko.

Even with the meager financial resources of the provincial government, the chief executive said he will give special concessions to barangays with functional BCPCs.

The chief executive called on officials to strengthen theirBarangay Councils for the Protection of Children and reassess their development plans to include children oriented programs and projects.

“As elective officials, we are usually preoccupied with tangible accomplishments to reciprocate the trust given us by the electorate which sometimes eclipses our vision to unseen yet more rewarding intents. It is time to give children what is due them,” Mayaen remarked in his recent State of the Children’s Address.

The BCPC is a mandated special body tasked to look into the welfare of children. Among other things this body aims to: ensure that every child finishes at least elementary education, report to proper authorities cases of child abuse, prevent child labor, promote health and education of children, and prepare plans of action for children and ensure the integration of these plans into the long term barangay development agenda.

This special body has its counterpart in the municipal and provincial levels but the governor stressed the crucial role of barangay officials since they are the most knowledgeable as to the actual conditions and needs of the youth in their respective areas. “The municipal and provincial councils cannot come out with a purposive and objective plan without knowing your priorities,” Mayaen said.

The report of the governor revealed an improvement on health and education indicators but showed an alarming increase on child abuse cases.

The percentage of infants with low birth weight decreased and so with the number of child death.

Malnutrition rate of children decreased from 6.62% to 4.75% this year.
In education, the number of children attending Early Child Care and Development rose up with the construction of more day care centers.

Progress could also be gleaned in the elementary and secondary levels with an improved performance rating in the National Achievement Test annually administered by the Department of Education.

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Revilla seeks remedy to weather-hit roads in CL

ARAYAT, Pampanga— Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla, Jr., who chairs the Senate Committee on Public Works, wants to build roads in Central Luzon that can withstand the devastating effects of climate change.

Revilla has appealed to the Department of Public Works and Highways to make sure that damaged infrastructure, particularly in Pampanga, will be repaired or reconstructed using materials and designs that can withstand harsh weather conditions.

He cited as example the Arnedo Dike here, which had already breached, resulting in the flooding of several villages in Pampanga during typhoons.

The lawmaker visited the said dike after the onslaught of the back-to-back typhoons “Pedring” and “Quiel.”

“Sa nakikitanatinmahinana halos angmga dikes that run through Pampanga and stretches back to Nueva Ecija. Dapattalagang i-strengthen o i-climate-change proof (As what we have seen, the dikes that run through Pampanga and stretches back to Nueva Ecija are weak. They really need to be strengthened or made climate-change proof),” the senator said.

He said he had already inspected the dike six years ago after a severe flooding and he recalled that a section of it had been restored.

“Ang Arnedo Dike ay 70 years old na.Talagangkailangangayusinulit at patibayin (Arnedo Dike is already 70 years old. There is a dire need to fix and fortify it),” he said.

The lawmaker further pointed out that the realignment is only justifiable considering the extent of destruction and distress caused by rising floodwaters.

He also said that the national government should realign the funds intended for road projects to upgrade flood control infrastructures all over the country.

“There is a need to reduce damage of properties and number of casualties during the onslaught of typhoons by aligning the funds intended for infrastructure projects,” Revilla said.

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P1.7 marijuana bricks confiscated in Kalinga

TABUK CITY – Marijuana bricks worth close to P2 million were confiscated by joint personnel of 3rd Maneuver Company Regional Public Safety Battalion and Provincial Anti-Illegal Drug Special Operations Task Group of Kalinga Police Provincial Office on Oct. 29 at about 6:15 p.m.at a checkpoint at Block 3 in Barangay Bulanao.

Earlier, information was received by members of the 3rd MC RPSB that a man riding on a motorcycle will transport two sacks of marijuana bricks from Tinglayan, Kalinga to a bus terminal at Bulanao, Tabuk.

Immediately, police set up a checkpoint at Block 3 in Bulanao where a speeding motorcycle suddenly stopped upon seeing the operatives.

The motorcycle got out of control and the unidentified driver fell down but managed to escape taking advantage of the darkness.

The team confiscated 70 marijuana bricks valued at P750,000 wrapped with paper inside two red sacks and a red motorcycle without plate number.

The marijuana bricks were turned over to Kalinga provincial police office while the motorcycle was brought to 3rd MC office for safekeeping.

Kalinga police are still trying to determine identity of the suspect and owner of the motorcycle used in the crime.

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5,000 Jehovah's Witnesses to hold Baguio convention

By Gobleth C. Moulic

BAGUIO CITY - How can we raise our children to be responsible, God-fearing adults?

This is one of the topics that will be addressed in the three-day annual convention of Jehovah's Witnesses which started Nov. 4.

More than 5,000 Witnesses from Baguio and nearby Benguet attended the series of Bible-based lectures every Friday, Saturday and Sunday of November at the Athletic Bowl in Burnham Park.

On Nov. 11-13, the programs will be presented in Iloko and Nov. 18-20, in Filipino. There is also a convention in Loo Elementary School ground in Loo, Buguias on Nov. 18-20.

Hearing-impaired individuals as well as those who understand Filipino Sign Language (FSL) will meet at the Baguio Convention Center on Nov. 25-27. Tagged as the most silent convention, the entire program will be presented in FSL and Natural Sign Language (NSL).

Since October, thousands of Witness volunteers have been going from house to house to distribute invitation to residents.

“Violence, immorality and global warming, along with other environmental disasters have led people to ask, 'Will Humans Ruin this Earth?' This will be answered on the Sunday morning program,” the invitation reads.

Scriptural and practical counsel will be given to the youths, parents and couples which are meant to strengthen family ties, according to organizers.

From late October 2011 through January 2012, Jehovah's Witnesses will hold 109 conventions in 74 areas in the country with the theme “Let God's Kingdom Come!”

The programs will be presented in Bicol, Cebuano, English, Hiligaynon, Iloko, Korean, Pangasinan, Tagalog, and Waray-waray.

All convention sessions are open to the public and are free. For details, log on to www.jw-media.org and www.watchtower.org.

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Suspect in Pangasinan cop chief's murder surrenders

BAYAMBANG, Pangasinan -- The suspect in the killing of the police chief of this town and his wife is now in jail after surrendering to police.

Supt. Rolie Saltat, city police chief, said they would file double murder charges against Lyndon Millan, 41, elder brother of Supt. Lloyd Millan, 39, who together with his wife Cherryl, 39, was gunned down Oct. 30 in a barangay hall here.

Saltat said he and Mayor Hernani Braganza had received text messages from the suspect, who works at the Public Order and Safety Office in the city hall, for his surrender, several hours after the incident.

Saltat said Lyndon told him that he did not regret killing his own brother and sister-in-law.
Lloyd had reportedly been at odds with his parents and siblings due to a dispute involving their family's salt farm.

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