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May 13-19, 2019
Bikoy video is web of lies, deceit
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‘Senate thumbs down narco inquiry’
ENATOR PANFILO LACSON, who heads the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, has cancelled the inquiry into accusations made by Peter Joemel Advincula, who claimed to be “Bikoy,” the hooded figure who appeared in a series of online “Ang Totoong Narcolist” videos linking members of the First Family to alleged illegal drug trade. Lacson earlier said if ster proposed legislation Advincula can substan- providing heavier penaltiate his claims, then the ties against perjury, espeSenate is willing to hear cially before congressiothe allegations to deter- nal investigations. mine if such serious acBut Lacson said he cancusations have basis. celled the inquiry after He said one of the Senate President Vicente supposed goals of the Sotto bared that hearing would be to bolContinue on page 2
Bikoy
Mystery surrounds arrests of Pagadian gunmen An army officer speaks to a group of men who were arrested last week in Danlugan village in Pagadian City in Zamboanga del Sur province for possessing assorted weapons while travelling on board two trucks.
PAGADIAN CITY – Police and military officials remain silent over the arrests of 19 gunmen who were intercepted by soldiers in Pagadian City in Zamboanga
del Sur province last week. The men, all wearing black bonnets, were in two trucks when villagers in Danlugan spotted them and quickly informed sol-
diers in the area. Troops had seized from the men five M16 automatic rifles, seven .45-caliber pistols, two .357-caliber revolvers, one 9mm pistol, a .38-cali-
ber revolver and assorted ammunitions, including 17 bonnets. But the mystery deepens after a source in Continue on page 2
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The Mindanao Examiner
May 13-19, 2019
Bikoy video is web of lies, deceit ‘Senate thumbs down narco inquiry’
Continued from page 1 Advincula also implicated former President Benigno Aquino and other officials from the previous administration to narcotics. “SP Sotto said it all. We are now recalling the letter of invitation sent to Advincula. Notices will be sent out for the cancellation of the committee hearing…Enough of this nonsense,” Lacson said in his Twitter account. “The problem with asking Bikoy who are the people behind him is if we will believe him,” he added. Lacson earlier set a congressional inquiry into Advincula’s claims under the condition that he personally presents his sworn statement and evidence related to his accusations. IBP Last week, Advincula appeared at the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) where he read a statement before the members of the media. Advincula said he surfaced because of threats to his life following his revelations that linked Duterte’s son Paulo, and other members of the family to the drug trade. Paolo strongly denied all allegations against him or any family members named in the viral video. Allies of Duterte accused the IBP of allowing itself to be used by Advincula to attack the First Family. Even Paolo had this to say: “Kapanipaniwala daw ang mga alegasyon ni Bikoy sabi ng
IBP. Ano? Wa mo kuyapi? Nakakawala ng respeto ang IBP. Mga abogado kayo, matatalino sana kayo, pero, nakapagtataka lang na ang bilis ninyong paniwalaan ang sinasabi ng isang kilalang scammer na nagpakilalang si Bikoy. Kataw-anan kaayo mo.” “Mula sa pagiging kilalang scammer, ngayon ay certified na artista itong taong nagpakilalang Bikoy. Ganito. Puro satsat. Panay drama. Mag-sampa ka ng kaso. Sasagutin kita. Haharapin kita. Isama mo rin si (Senator Antonio) Trillanes,” he said in his Facebook page. IBP has declined legal assistance requested by Advincula after it was criticized by its chapter in Davao City for allowing him to use IBP as a venue for his own political interest. “In the pursuit of its mandate to provide access to justice to the poor and the marginalized, the IBP cannot be seen to be siding with or going against any candidate or political party,” the IBP said. Lies, deceit Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo cast doubt on Advincula’s credibility, noting that he is currently facing multiple criminal cases. “Information about the criminal background of Advincula is starting to come out. It appears that he has been incarcerated in 2012 for conviction of illegal recruitment and large scale estafa, as well as for theft,” he said. “Presently, there are news that he is facing multiple criminal cases like estafa, among others. These crimes in-
volve moral turpitude that goes to the very integrity and credibility of Advincula or Bikoy.” Panelo described Advincula’s allegations as incredible and absurd since these have already been disproved, including his claim that former Special Assistant to the President Bong Go had a tattoo on his back, which linked him to the illegal drug trade. Go had previously showed his back has no tattoo to the media and public to show the falsity of Advincula’s claim, Panelo said, adding, that some entities mentioned by Advincula in his videos as involved in the narcotics trade such as the Rural Bank of Guinobatan, Inc. and the Misibis Bay Resort have also denied his allegations. “There is a dictum in law which says, you lie in one, you lie in all. This legal principle applies to Advincula or Bikoy,” Panelo said. Bombshell Panelo said a set of diagram has linked the opposition and several media groups to alleged conspiracy to destabilize the government and at the same time bolster support for the “Otso Diretso” senatorial slate, he said: “What is important now is it appears from this diagram that the Liberal Party, the Magdalo and the other the groups indicated in the matrix are working hand-in-hand. “The intelligence information shows that some of them, if not all of them, are using the
Mystery surrounds arrests of Pagadian gunmen Continued from page 1 Pagadian City released to The Zamboanga Post the names and a photo of those arrested, and two of them turned out to be local policemen. But police and military press statements did not say that two of the gunmen were active members of the police force in Pagadian City. “Prior to apprehension, the government troops received reports from the residents about the presence of armed elements riding in two pick-up vehicles.” “The government troops immediately responded in the area and were able to flag down the vehicles and immediately apprehended the personalities on board possessing firearms in plain view,” said Lt. Col. Ray Tiongson, a spokesman for the 1st Infantry Division. Brig. Gen. Bagnus Gaerlan, the division commander, said operations against lawless elements will continue in Zamboanga Peninsula to ensure public safety. “With the continued cooperation of our people in reporting the presence of armed elements and threat groups in their communities, we can respond at once and prevent
these lawless armed elements from disrupting the peaceful and orderly conduct of our elections,” he said. A man, who witnessed and took video of the arrest of the gunmen, said: “These people were all using bonnets. Their vehicles have no plate numbers and its conduction stickers were covered by a tape,” he said and uploaded the one-hour video on Facebook page “BM Marlyn Revelo.” An unidentified army commander ordered the passengers - in front of village officials, journalists and policemen, including an official from the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) - to disembark one by one from the trucks as he warned them of severe consequences if they resist violently or try to fight off security forces. “We are searching your vehicle in front of the Barangay Captain, the COMELEC…isa-isa lang tayo bababa at kung gagawa kayo ng karahasan alam na po ninyo kung ano ang mangyayari sa inyo,” the commander said as soldiers surrounded the trucks. The passengers, their hands raised in the air as a
gesture of peaceful surrender, disembarked one by one as civilians watching not far away, cheered and clapped the soldiers who were leading the unidentified men in front of a makeshift table on the middle of the road. An army truck and several military vehicles were also spotted nearby. The men were later frisked and searched by soldiers for any weapons and some of them yielded guns. Others carried what looked like talisman. The army official also called a police officer to read the (Miranda Warning) rights of those arrested. Tiongson said the arrests of the gunmen were carried out by members of the 53rd Infantry Battalion. “The apprehended personalities and recovered firearms were brought to Pagadian City Police Station for proper disposition and filing of appropriate charges,” he said without further elaborating. It was unknown whether the gunmen were involved in the spate of killings in Pagadian or members of a private armed group or working as armed partisans for politicians. (The Zamboanga Post)
same office – a four square meter office. What do you call this Linear-something, Makati? And personalities like Bong Banal, Kokoy Dayao and Rodel Jayme – they are all known to be advocates of the Liberal Party. And then, even their e-mail addresses appears to be—that their e-mail are the one sharing this video of Bikoy. ‘Yung mga e-mail nila, ibig sabihin the same people are sharing the same video of Bikoy,” he said. Explaining the diagram, Panelo said that on April 2nd, “Ang Totoong Narcolist” episode first surfaced online, on Metro Balita(.net) and it pointed to Paolo Duterte being the first major principal of the drug syndicate. And then three days later, Senator Antonio Trillanes released a statement on his official Facebook page commending the creator of the ‘Ang Totoong Narcolist’ video and commented that he’s looking forward to the next episode. Media Panelo further said that on the same date, a newspaper column by Ellen Tordesillas entitled “OPINION: Battle of Narco List” was published on ABSCBN website; and accordingly to, Tordesillas commented that the videos looked professionally done. And on April 7, Ang Totoong Narcolist Episode Number 2 surfaced and identified this time the daughter of the President to be the second major principal. And then the day after, the video of ‘Ang Totoong Narcolist Episode 3’ identified former Go – who is now a candidate for the Senate – to be the major principal. And then on April 12, the same video identified the son-in-law of the President Duterte, Manases Carpio – the spouse of the present Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte – as the last major principal of the drug syndicate. Then on April 22, the number 5 episode was released and Bikoy revealed the task organization of the drug syndicate and identified personalities comprising the Bicol quadrangle group to include the location of its based operation identified as Misibis Bay Resort located in Cagraray Island, Albay. “Now, you will notice the one encircled with red ink is the logo of the Rural Bank. In other words, the video presented the logo of the Rural Bank and presented some accounts, bank accounts. The purpose of course is to make it appear that it’s an authentic document, but it appears now that the logo was just placed there, copy paste kumbaga. And the Rural Bank has already issued a statement disclaiming and it has made a statement that no such account appears in the record. That was made on April 23, the Rural Bank of Guinobatan in Albay released its official statement denying the company’s involvement in the fund transaction, a
personality identified in the video,” Panelo said during a recent news conference. “And also, the Albay Luxury Resort Hotel Management denies link – it was also shown in the video that supposed to be the place being used as the headquarters of the quadrangle group. And before that, you remember that Bong Go showed his back to dispute the allegation in the video that he has a tattoo in his back – the dragon sign. In fact he did it twice. Disputing again the allegation made in the video,” he narrated. Panelo said there has been an analysis made and it appears that there is a multi-noble relationship of these different vectors from Tordesillas, particularly on her online activities. Liberal Party “The activities revealed a very active collaboration between the groups of Edwin Lacierda, who is identified with the Liberal Party; Kokoy Dayao, Joma Sison, Antonio Trillanes, Rodel Jayme, Bong Banal, Hamad Fontejos and other Liberal Party groups and supporters.” “Now, there has been analysis on the voice (of Bikoy and Advincula). You recall that in that—Ang Totoong Narcolist (video), there was a narrator, may narrator doon eh, before the voice of that Bikoy. And initial voice recognition through oral spectral process which conducted based on the known and unknown voices of the different targets to harmonize the fundamental auditory frequencies of the following suspected personalities, namely Bong Banal and Rodel Jayme,” Panelo bared. He said it appears now in the Bikoy video that it was Bong Banal who was the narrator and that he is supposed to be kind of IT expert in and a known advocate of the Liberal Party. Panelo said the domain registrant of www.metrobalita. net identified as the first website to initially circulate the viral YouTube video on two separate articles dated April 2 directly affiliated with the Liberal Party, as he was identified as the administrator of LP-leaning Facebook pages, significantly the Aquino legacy. “Also, he administered the hotline propaganda meetings of the LP during the 2016 presidential elections. You will see in that video that—can you put back the other? Ibalik mo nga doon sa—you will noticed that this person who was facing charges now, what’s his name na nga, Rodel Jayme is seen with a photograph with the VP Leni together with their standard shirts.” More personalities implicated “And then next slides shows the face of Bong Banal, the narrator of the video and he is an administrator, member of significant anti-Duterte and LP-leaning Facebook groups, pages actively circulating propaganda with the different so-
cial media platforms alongside this Jayme Rodel: artist and also he is a photojournalist identified providing visual representations and images for different black propagandas, used by Rappler. He actively initiated protest regarding the ousting of former Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno,” the Presidential spokesman said. Panelo also showed a photo of Pontejos, who was a former Navy officer and a member of the Magdalo group. And Jayme shown in the photo is connected with (Two Kit?) Incorporated as a freelance programmer and he is a well-known supporter of the Liberal Party and who was found to be the web administrator of Metro Balita when the Ang Totoong Narcolist first surfaced. Metro Balita is known to be promoting Otso Diretso candidates on its Facebook page. “That is the diagram which we have also here. This is another diagram where you will … it’s seen that the links between the National Union of Journalists, Alejano, Hilbay, the Liberal Party, Rodel Jayme, Trillanes, the Rappler, the Vera Files, Ellen Tordesillas. In other words, it is obvious that these groups have linked together to discredit the Duterte administration and to boost the candidacies of the Otso Diretso senatorial candidates,” Panelo explained. “Now, after the release of the matrix linkages between Bikoy and Ellen Tordesillas to the public, the website of Metro Balita was permanently shut down by its administrator. Likewise, most recent posts of Metro Balita Facebook page pertaining to Bikoy videos were immediately deleted by the administrator. That’s another personality shown by the diagram identified by Rodel Jayme as the client who requested him to create the Metro Balita website. And who is this woman, identified as Maru Nguyen or Maru Xie and Maria Kristina Elvira – in other words, aliases; An ardent supporter of the Liberal Party and Otso candidates and administrator of Freedom WallPh or Philippines Facebook page,” he added. He said government also have the photograph of Filmore Rull, who is a member of the PMA Class of 2001, and a member of the Samahang Magdalo, and currently serves as security officer of Trillanes, who is the alleged facilitator for Jayme’s safety after the Totoong Narcolist videos became controversial. He said another personality, Jerry Mae Maghinay, who is the registered owner Now You Know website, is responsible for the uploading of videos of Eduardo Acierto on March 25, April 7 and May 5. Acierto is accused as behind the smuggling of illegal drugs in the Bureau of Customs, which he denied, but had gone into hiding. Those named in the matrix denied the accusations.(Mindanao Examiner and PNA)
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The Mindanao Examiner
May 13-19, 2019
SSS maternity disbursements reach P7-B in 2018, eyes increase benefits for OFWs CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY - The Social Security System (SSS) said more than 326,000 female members were assisted by the agency in 2018 with maternity benefit disbursements reaching to around P7 billion, a 15.6 percent increase from over P6.11 billion recorded in 2017. “We are glad that we are able to assist more of our female members financially during their pregnancy in 2018. We have recorded an increase of 12.6 percent or 36,550 female members more who availed of the benefit in 2018 compared to the previous year,” SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Aurora C. Ignacio said. Of the total number of beneficiaries in 2018, 68.2 percent or 222,551 are employee-members with total disbursements amounting to P5.98 billion. Voluntary members followed comprising 25 percent or 81,641 with total disbursements of around P850 million. This is followed by self-employed members with 4.5 percent or 14,692 and Overseas Filipino Worker members with 2.3 percent or 7,429 with total disbursements of around P80 million and P150 million, respectively. Moreover, SSS maternity benefit disbursements in
the first two months of 2019 have already reached P1.34 billion with over 62,000 beneficiaries. “We are expecting that these disbursements will continue to increase this year following the implementation of the 105-day Expanded Maternity Leave Law (EMLL) after the Implementing Rules and Regulations was already signed on Labor Day last week,” Ignacio said. The EMLL will push the current 60/78-day paid maternity leave to 105 days for live childbirth, regardless of the mode of delivery, with an additional 15 days for solo mothers and an option for an additional 30 days without pay. A 60-day paid leave, on the other hand, will be given to a qualified female member in case of miscarriage or emergency termination of pregnancy. The maternity benefit may be granted regardless of the frequency of deliveries or miscarriage. Further, the current maximum financial assistance of P32,000 will increase to P70,000 based on the P20,000 Monthly Salary Credit. “SSS is motivated to continuously develop its benefit programs to provide more meaningful assistance to its members,”
Ignacio said. “We recognize the needs of mothers and their new-born babies. We hope that through the EMLL, women workers may be able to fully enjoy their rights to health and decent work,” she added. Ignacio said they are also committed to give Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) higher social security benefits especially during their retirement as it pushes to implement the compulsory coverage of OFWs mandated under Republic Act 11199 or the Social Security Act of 2018. She said the pension fund will exhaust all ways to come out with the guidelines on compulsory OFW coverage. SSS data showed that as of end-2018, there were 1.14 million registered OFWs in the system, of which around 550,000 were paying members during the year. The pension fund also disbursed an estimated P5.65 billion in benefits to more than 63,000 OFW pensioners and members in 2018, or 89 percent of the P6.37 billion contributions collected from OFWs on the same year. The pension fund is proposing that all landbased OFWs should pay at least a minimum monthly contribution of P960 which
is equivalent to 12 percent of the new minimum monthly salary credit (MSC) for OFWs of P8,000. Even paying only one month of contribution at the new minimum MSC, an OFW-member will get 61 times in return from his contribution or P58,400 in total lump-sum benefits for disability, death or retirement plus funeral grant. If they opt to pay at the highest MSC of P20,000 or P2,400 monthly contribution, the benefit amount would be P116,000. Sickness benefit of OFW-members will also increase under the new minimum MSC for OFWs. From the previous P150/day, it will increase by 60 percent to P240/day. Maternity benefit will also increase by more than double from P10,000-P13,000 to P28,000 under the Expanded Maternity Leave Law which took effect on March 11. For retirement benefit, those with 120 qualifying monthly contributions at P8,000 MSC will have a basic monthly pension amounting to P3,200. If they are paying based on the P20,000 MSC, the pension benefit will be P8,000 per month. This shows that the higher the contributions, the higher the benefits. “We’d like our OFWs to know that membership with
SSS is for life. Membership does not expire so all contributions you put in are all accounted for. In case you stopped paying due to work abroad, you can always reactivate your membership by continuing to pay your contribution to become eligible to the seven types of SSS benefits including unemployment insurance. I hope our OFWs will look at
SSS contributions as their long-term savings and not an expense burden,” Ignacio said. Ignacio said that SSS as an implementor of the law will make sure that all provisions under the SS Act of 2018 will be fully realized. At present, SSS has 26 foreign representative offices in 18 countries for OFW member assistance services.
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The Mindanao Examiner
May 13-19, 2019
Duterte signs Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act PRESIDENT RODRIGO DUTERTE has signed into law a bill institutionalizing energy efficiency and conservation, enhancing the efficient use of energy, and granting incentives to energy efficiency and conservation projects in the country. Duterte signed the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act (Republic Act 11285) on April 12, but a copy of which was released to media only recently. Under the new law, gov-
ernment recognizes the need to “institutionalize energy efficiency and conservation as a national way of life geared towards the efficient and judicious utilization of energy by formulating, developing, and implementing energy efficiency and conservation plans and programs.” This way, it would “secure sufficiency and stability of energy supply in the country to cushion the impact of high prices of imported fuels to local markets and protect
the environment in support of the economic and social development goals of the country.” The law creates an Inter-Agency Energy Efficiency and Conservation Committee (IAEECC) to evaluate and approve government energy efficient projects as defined under the new law and to provide strategic direction in the implementation of the Government Energy Management Program (GEMP). The GEMP refers to the
government-wide program to reduce the government’s monthly consumption of electricity and petroleum products through electricity efficiency and conservation, and efficiency and conservation in fuel use of government vehicles, among others. The IAEECC shall be chaired by the Energy Secretary and composed of the Secretaries of the Department of Budget and Management, Department of Finance, Department of Trade
OFW Bank to start operations soon THE PROPOSED BANK for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) will start operations as soon as all appointments of the board of directors are made, Malacañang said. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo made the assurance after Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III raised concerns that no appointment has been made in the bank’s board of directors. “As soon as there is an appointment with the three members of the board, operations na kaagad ‘yan,” Panelo said. The board will be chaired by the Landbank president. Other members are Landbank-designated OFW president as vice chairperson; four Landbank-des-
ignated directors or officers as members; a member representing the Department of Labor and Employment; a member representing the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration; and a private sector member representing overseas Filipinos. Panelo said the OFW Bank has remained non-operational for more than a year since President Rodrigo Duterte signed Executive Order 44 on its establishment because board members have yet to be appointed. He said Duterte has already instructed the Department of Finance (DOF) to speed up the review of the appointments. “Si Presidente (ang mag-a-appoint) pero bini-vet siya nila Secretary
of Finance. Pinapamadali niya yung vetting. As soon as the recommendation of the Secretary of Finance is there, makaka-appoint agad si Presidente,” he said. Panelo shrugged off remarks that the appointment of board members is taking too long, noting that this is natural, considering there is so much work to do in government. He, however, assured that the Duterte administration continues to prioritize all problems concerning OFWs. He also said the DOF is also trying to make the bank digital to make it easier for OFWs to use their smartphones in all of their transactions. In September 2017, Duterte signed EO 44 di-
recting the Philippine Postal Corp. and the Bureau of the Treasury to transfer their Postalbank shares to the Landbank at zero value. Under the EO, Landbank was ordered to ensure the capitalization of the Overseas Filipino Bank. (Azer Parrocha)
and Industry, Department of Transportation, Department of Science and Technology, Department of Interior and Local Government, and the Department of Public Works and Highways, and the Director General of National Economic and Development Authority. Powers and functions of the IAEECC include to prepare an annual assessment of opportunities for energy cost reduction in stateowned and leased buildings and facilities designated by the IAEECC; to review all proposed capital projects and energy cost operating budgets of agencies designated by the IAEECC; and, recommend energy conversation measures which would reduce operating costs in stateowned and leased buildings or facilities. The IAEECC is also tasked to provide any officer
or entity of government technical and consultative assistance concerning energy cost management or conservation and annually recommends specific operations and maintenance procedure modifications and capital projects for state-owned and leased buildings and facilities designed to reduce energy consumption and costs. It may also issue a report describing the status of government energy efficiency projects and the GEMP, and develop after study of existing emerging energy conservation technologies and guidelines as may be necessary or desirable to aid the work of the IAEECC among other tasks. The act is a consolidation of Senate Bill 1531 and House Bill 8629 which was passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on January 30. (Azer Parrocha)
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The Mindanao Examiner
May 13-19, 2019
‘There’s always a silver lining for everybody’
AFFIDAVIT OF SELF-ADJUDICATION I, GUIDA ABAS UGAY of legal age, Filipino ci zen widow and residing at Brgy. Kayaga, Kabacan, North Cotabato, Philippines hereby freely and voluntarily declare and state THAT: 1. I am the only legal heir of the deceased PALANO ABAS UGAY who died on January 17, 2019 at Al Ehsaa, Eastern Province, K.S.A. 2. The Deceased died intestate without leaving any Last Will and Testament and without any outstanding debts; 3. The Deceased le the following property/ies, to wit: BDO Kabayan Peso Savings BDO 331: COTABATO - KABACAN BRANCH Savings Account No. 003310180616 Amount: Two Hundred Twenty Three Thousand One Hundred Thirty Nine Pesos & 75/100 (Php 223, 139.75) Name: PALANO A. UGAY Address: Crossing Liton, Barangay Kagaya, Kabacan, North Cotabato, Philippines. 4. Pursuant to Sec on 1 of Rule 74 of the revised Rules of Court of the Philippines, I hereby adjudicate unto myself the above-described property/ies by means of this Affidavit. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have set my hand this 30th day of April, 2019 at Kabacan, Philippines.
Christian Y. Cahig (MSU) VILLANUEVA, Misamis Oriental – For most families living way below poverty line poses a challenge for them to send their children to school. And based on the 2017 Annual Poverty Indicators Survey (APIS), about 9 percent of the estimated 39.2 million Filipinos aged six to 24 years old were out-ofschool children and youth (OSCY). One of the most common reasons among OSCYs for not attending school was the high cost of education or financial concern, which constituted 17.9 percent of OSCY. The study further showed nationwide, about one-half of OSCYs belong to families whose income fall at the bottom 30 percent based on their per capita. Take the family of Christian Y. Cahig for example. His mother is a plain housewife, leaving his father, a utility in a general manpower services, as the breadwinner of the family. Christian, who hails from Villanueva town in Misamis Oriental, is the eldest of three children. Now Christian of Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute (MSU-IIT) is a registered electrical engineer. He emerged as the top 1 of 1600 (out of 2,548) registered electrical engineers successfully passed the April 2019 Electrical Engineering Licensure Examinations. He spent all his schoolings in government institutions—at Vicente N. Chavez Memorial Central School in Villanueva, Misamis Oriental. He was also a recipient to the Philippine Science High School-Central Mindanao Campus in in Balo-i town, Lanao del Norte, and later became a recipient to Science and Technology of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) under Republic Act 7687 Scholarship to poor but deserving students whose families’ annual gross incomes do not exceed the
poverty threshold limit. For Christian, it is a humbling experience for him being a topnotcher of licensure examinations as it was only his wishful thinking for him to be on top of the aspiring electrical engineers. There was none yet from MSU-IIT who garnered 1st placer for the said field though, according to him, was not a serious challenge. He is also elated that his sacrifices paid off. He once dreamed about when he was in his freshman year to be named as the first summa cum laude for the electrical engineering field at MSU-IIT. As a student, he was motivated, as the eldest, to set a good example for his two younger siblings. Further, he strived to make his parents happy about what he has accomplished. Glass half-full Taking life as half-full, Christian said to the youth to think of things that make
us better despite challenges; and have a mindset you are halfway there. In poverty, there is always a way to walk around although ‘lisud siya’ (it is not easy). It takes guts and there is always help or solutions to challenges. “When you are trained in that kind of situations, later on when you look back, the situation is really for you to experience such hardship,” Christian shared. Hence, he said never give up. There’s always a ‘silver lining’ to every challenge in life. DOST opportunity Grateful to the opportunity bestowed on him, Christian said he was honed by the science and technology department to be of substance to the country. Hence, he said he is always focusing his decisions and actions on the mindset to thriving to become worthy to be called a DOST scholar and never giving up. (EOR)
AFFIDAVIT OF RELEASE AND QUITCLAIM WITH INDEMNITY UNDERTAKING I, GUIDA ABAS UGAY, all of legal age, Filipino ciƟzen, and resident/s of Brgy. Kayaga, Kabacan, North Cotabato, Philippines, under oath, hereby declare and state that: 1. I am the heir/s of the deceased PALANO ABAS UGAY, who died intestate on January 17, 2019 at Al Ehsaa, Eastern Province, K.S.A.. 2. For and in considera on of my/our receipt of the amount of Php. 223,139.75, representing proceeds of Savings Account no. 003310180616 of the Deceased with BDO Unibank, Inc.331: Cotabato-Kabacan Branch, I hereby expressly and absolutely remiss, release and forever discharge BDO Unibank, Inc., its owners, directors, stockholders, officers, employees and assigns (collec vely, “BDO”) from any and all claims, suits ac ons or causes of ac on which I/we, my/our successors/assigns now have or in the future claim to have against BDO in connec on with the Account. 3. I/we hereby further obligate myself/ourselves, jointly and severally to indemnity BDO for any loss or damages which it may sustain in that event that any third person/s shall succeed in establishing a right superior to that of mine/ours concerning the Account. FURTHER AFFIANT/S SAYETH NAUGHT.
Ozamiz coop pursues success thru technology OZAMIZ CITY, Misamis Occidental - When success is the only option, failure is out of the picture. And this proves true for Ozamiz City Integrated Cooperative (OCIC) who never gave up on a technology challenge. And with the assistance of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in Region 10, OCIC through the agency’s Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP) project, the cooperative has been successful. The willingness to change and the flexibility to adopt are always the winning measures to grasp success in technology adoption, according to DOST. OCIC is into rice milling and trading with members that are mostly palay farmers. With more than decades of operation, OCIC realized there is a need to embrace new technology particularly
for the drying of rice grains. In 2012, OCIC’s Manager Grace Monarca sought the assistance of DOST through its Provincial Science and Technology Center in Misamis Occidental under SETUP. The assistance was to mechanize the drying facility. However, with the upgraded mechanical dryer, project operation for three years had not been swiftly carried out as there were glitches on the machine. Nevertheless, OCIC continued its operation and still certain that technology can give the cooperative a breakthrough. For DOST, its assistance to OCIC was not the case of “plant and forget,” which Monarca was thankful for. Last year, under the Local Grant-Aid program of DOST, the drying facility was rehabilitated to enable OCIC become fully operational free
from technology glitches. “Nalipay mi na wala mi gibiyaan sa DOST hangtud na namaayo ang dryer,” Monarca said. Since its rehabilitation, the mechanical dryer has been of great help to its operation. Drying hours are shortened from two to three days to 14 hours, dried rice grains will not result to broken rice after milling and it has no scorching smell.
In October and November 2018, just before the harvest season ended, the cooperative was able to use the rehabilitated mechanical dryer and dried 1,000 sacks or 60,000 kgs of rice grains and in April 2019, OCIC was able to use the mechanical dryer unhampered. Monarca expressed her gratitude to DOST because the drying facility became
fully operational. The project is not only her legacy to the cooperative, but it made her realized to consider failure only an option and she chose success. “Bisan mo retire nako, active gihapon ko mosuporta sa coop. Nakita nako dako ug matabang ang technology sama sa pag upgrade sa galingan. Naa’y mga problema pero dili lang mo surrender,” Monarca said.
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The Mindanao Examiner
May 13-19, 2019
Across : 1. Get by 4. Petticoat 8. Mimicker 12. Dad’s partner 13. Singer ___ Turner 14. Citi Field predecessor 15. Globe 16. Opposing 18. Tantalize 20. A Great Lake 21. Sincere 23. Walk heavily 27. Appraises 28. Fight 29. Pass, as time 31. Dishonor 34. Had been 35. Peeler 36. Snaky shapes 39. Gathered 42. Wail 44. Transparent 45. Instantaneous 49. Memorable period 50. ___-do-well 51. Mix 52. Border 53. Is unable 54. Roosters’ mates 55. Briny deep
Answer to last week’s crossword:
Down : 1. Ham it up 2. Seoul’s country 3. Humiliate 4. Roads 5. Stretch the truth 6. Map parts 7. Poker holding 8. Daisylike flower 9. ___ Beta Kappa 10. Poetic dusk 11. Cleaning cloth 17. Occupy a chair 19. Finger sound 22. Comprehend 24. Superintendents 25. Soccer’s ___ Hamm 26. Fountain ___ 29. Lamb’s mom
30. “Leaving ___ Vegas” 31. Beaver’s creation 32. Blackboard wipers 33. Interlock 35. Roof of the mouth 37. ___ & Roeper 38. Downhearted 40. Mysterious 41. Stage offering 43. Aspiration 45. Business abbr. 46. “Cry ___ River” (2 wds.) 47. Guys 48. Can metal
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The Mindanao Examiner
May 13-19, 2019
7,000 Pinoys barred from HEALTH leaving country Hika: Natural Na Gamutan OVER 7,000 Filipino travelers were barred from leaving the country in the first quarter of this year due to the government’s intensified campaign against human trafficking, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said. BI Port Operations Division Chief Grifton Medina said a total of 7,311 passengers were deferred for failure to comply with requirements for travelers bound overseas from January to March. “We have been very careful in assessing these travelers as we wanted to ensure that they will not be victimized by human traffickers and illegal recruiters,” he explained. He said that in screening departing passengers, they follow the guidelines on departure formalities for international-bound passengers by Department of Justice (DOJ). He said that BI officers are duty-bound to strictly screen departing passengers because they “constitute the last line of defense in the government’s drive to combat trafficking in our ports”. Medina also clarified that being disallowed does not mean perpetual denial to depart the country. “Passengers whose departures were previously deferred
will be allowed after complying with requirements based on the DOJ guidelines. These requirements were set by the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) to ensure that our kababayans are protected from being victimized abroad,” he said. Erwin Ortañez, head of the BI’s Travel Control and Enforcement Unit, said more than 6,000 or about 84 percent of the passengers came from NAIA while the rest were stopped in the airports of Mactan, Clark, Iloilo, Kalibo, and Davao. He said that majority of the barred passengers had doubtful purpose of travel while some committed fraudulent acts such as misrepresentation and submitting spurious supporting documents. Among them were the underage overseas Filipino workers who were caught falsifying their birth dates in their passports and some Filipino workers who presented fake overseas employment certificates. BI Commissioner Jaime Morente lauded his personnel for their vigilance even as he exhorted them not to relent in their efforts to combat human trafficking. “We will continue our drive to protect our
countrymen from these syndicates who keep on sending workers abroad illegally, making them prone to abuse and exploitation in foreign lands,” he said. “The fight against human trafficking and illegal recruitment is a priority for this administration. Modern-day slavery has no place in this world, and we will make sure that Filipinos are protected from this threat,” Morente added. Morente noted that the country retained its Tier 1 rating in the US State Department’s 2018 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, which was achieved through their efforts and other partner agencies. “We’re one of the leading countries in the region when it comes to fighting human trafficking,” said Morente. The premier TIP rating was retained by the Philippines for the third straight year and is one of 39 countries among 186 surveyed that continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts to fight trafficking. A Tier 1 rating is given to those who fully comply with the minimum standards of the US Trafficking Victim Protection Act. (Ferdinand Patinio)
HETO ANG MGA kaalamang natutunan ko tungkol sa paggamot ng hika (asthma). Puwede ninyo itong subukan. 1. Damihan ang sibuyas at bawang sa inyong pagkain. Ang mga ito ay may quercetin at mustard oil na pangontra sa enzyme na nagpapasimula ng hika. 2. Ang pagkain ng maaanghang, tulad ng sili, ay nagpapaluwag sa daanan ng hangin sa baga. Ito ay may capsaicin na ‘mukokinetic’ at nagpapaluwag ng plema sa baga. 3. Kapag inaatake ng hika, subukan uminom ng matapang na kape – black coffee. Ang caffeine ay parang gamot na theophylline na nagbubuka ng mga tubo sa baga. 4. Kumain ng mga isda na mataas sa omega-3 fatty acids, tulad ng sardinas, tunsoy, tamban, alumahan, hasa-ha-
Dr. Willie T. Ong sa, tuna at tanigui para mabawasan ang hika. 5. Uminom ng Vitamin C tablet hangang 1,000 mg kada araw o uminom ng calamansi juice. 6. Mag-ehersisyo ng 3 hanggang 5 beses bawat linggo. Subukan mag-baras at palakasin ang mga braso, dibdib at likod para lumakas ang iyong masel na ginagamit sa paghinga. Iwasan po ang mga ito: 1. Ang soft drinks ay nakapagsisimula ng hika, lalo na sa mga bata. 2. Ang vetsin din ay masama sa may hika. Mas maraming vetsin, mas malala ang atake
ng hika. 3. Alamin ang pagkain na nakaka-allergy at iwasan ito. Sa Pinoy, kadalasan ito ay pagkaing dagat tulad ng pusit, hipon, alimango, at mga mani, itlog at manok. 4. Mag-ingat din sa mga gamot tulad ng pain relievers at aspirin. 5. Huwag kumain ng pagkaing nagpapakabag tulad ng beans, kasi lolobo at magkakaroon ng hangin sa tiyan. Baka mahirapan huminga. 6. Iwas sa polusyon sa hangin. Ayon sa isang pagsusuri ni Dr Gerard Hoek ng Netherlands, ang mga taong nakatira sa tabi ng mga highways o yung mga exposed sa polusyon ay mas maagang namamatay kumpara sa taong malinis ang nalalanghap na hangin. Umiwas sa maduduming hangin at lugar. Puwedeng magsuot ng face mask para mabawasan ang usok na nalalanghap.
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PDEA adapts 3-pronged approach in anti-drug campaign
T
HE PHILIPPINE DRUG Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said it has adopted a three-pronged strategy in the government’s campaign against illegal drugs which focuses on reduction of supply, demand, and harmful effects. “ C o g n i z a n t ing clandestine manufacture anti-drug education and inforof the rapidly changing land- of drugs; controlled delivery; mation to the public to enable scape of the drug problem in countering money-laundering; them to make informed decithe country, integrated and promotion of judicial cooper- sions about drugs. holistic approaches must be ation, strengthening research, “Alongside raising drug employed to achieve a maxi- data collection, and assessment awareness, PDEA, through the mum impact to be felt by the tools, among others. Inter-Agency Committee on AnFilipino citizenry,” said PDEA These supply-reduction ef- ti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD), ensures Director General Aaron Aqui- forts are pursuant to United Na- the treatment of drug users eino. tions Office on Drugs and Crime ther in residential and commuHe said the Supply Re- Political Declaration and Plan of nity-based rehabilitation cenduction Approach involves Action on International Cooper- ters. After treatment, reformers disrupting the manufacturing ation towards an Integrated and will undergo the social rehabiland distribution supply chain Balanced Strategy to Counter itation phase. This will provide of dangerous drugs through the World Drug Problem. them employment opportunilaw enforcement. He said the second prong ties and regain their dignity and Aside from suppressing of the strategy is Demand Re- place in our society,” Aquino the supply of illegal drugs, duction Approach, which re- said. among the priority programs duces or prevents people from “Communities must take PDEA is currently undertak- wanting to take illegal drugs collective action in fighting the ing to bring the approach to based on scientific evidence drug menace. Continued develfruition include: enhancing and the fundamentals of free- opment at the grassroots level local and international co- dom, dignity and human rights will help alleviate poverty, prooperation, coordination and targeting vulnerable groups, motes economic prospects relaw enforcement operations; and through mainstreaming of sulting in people’s engagement addressing new drug traffick- community involvement and in meaningful social structures. ing trends; strengthening of participation. These proved useful in addressanti-corruption measures; According to Aquino, to ing the root cause of drug use,” controlling precursors and complement the robust drug he added. amphetamine-type stimu- law enforcement efforts, PDEA The third part of the stratlants and preventing illegal continues to lessen the drug de- egy is Harm Reduction Apsale and diversion; target- pendence problem by providing proach, which is associated
PDEA Director General Aaron N. Aquino with interventions that reduce the acute impacts of drug use. These impacts are likely to be social or economic harms such as crime of desire, corruption, over-incarceration, violence, stigmatization, marginalization or harassment, among others, he said. “This promising approach is a welcome addition to the traditional supply and demand reduction strategy of the government. We are grounded on the reality that many people are finding it difficult to stop engaging in illegal drug activities. That is why we aspire to target each impact of the drug prob-
lem,” Aquino said. In the course of liberating people from the clutches of the drug menace, Aquino said they aim to encourage positive change in the lives of people who became dependent on illegal drug activities, mitigate the harms of drug laws and policies, and offer alternatives that seek to prevent or end drug dependency. PDEA’s efforts, he added, are underway to soften the impacts by implementing harm-reduction programs such as voluntary surrender of drug offenders under “Barangay Drug Clearing Program”, support to
plea bargaining agreement, and extensive nationwide implementation of “Balay Silangan Program”, “Project: Sagip Batang Solvent”, and “DrugFree Workplace Program”. “The three-pronged approach of the national anti-drug campaign are vital elements in building drug-resistant communities. Knowing fully well that the drug problem is a multi-faceted menace, PDEA has crafted anti-drug strategies in holistic approaches that will help us win the war against drugs,” Aquino said. (Christopher Lloyd Caliwan)
Mandaue City now has own legislative district The Cebu Provincial Government recently turned over 7 coasters to the municipalities of Ginatilan, Tabogon, Cordova, San Fernando, Ronda, Tudela and Poro at the Cebu Cultural Center. Provincial Administrator Mark Tolentino led the ceremonial turnover of the vehicles. Tudela Mayor Erwin Yu, Cordova Mayor Mary Therese Sitoy-Cho, Tabo-
gon Mayor Zigfred Duterte, Poro Mayor Luciano Rama, Ginatilan Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer Mary Joy Emnacen, San Fernan-
do Treasurer Edsel Laguda received the symbolic key from Tolentino during the turnover ceremony. Each coaster costs P2.996 million (Cebu Provincial Govt.)
PRESIDENT DUTERTE has signed a law creating the lone legislative district of Mandaue City in Cebu province. The law separates Mandaue City from the sixth legislative district of the province of Cebu to constitute the lone legislative district. “The City of Mandaue is hereby separated from the Sixth Legislative District of the Province of Cebu to constitute the Lone Legislative District of the
City of Mandaue, which shall commence in the next national and local elections after the effectivity of this Act,” the law reads. According to the law, incumbent representatives of the present sixth legislative district of Cebu will continue to represent the district until new representatives of Mandaue City have been elected. The Commission on Elections said it will issue the nec-
essary rules and regulations to implement the provisions of the law within 30 days after its effectivity. This new law, which originated in the House of Representatives, was passed by the House and Senate of the Philippines on December 4, 2018 and February 4, 2019, respectively. It will take effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. (Azer Parrocha)
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