VOL. 2 l NO. 6 l February 09, 2012
CPA allots P12M budget for more CCTV to strengthen port security measures By Fayette C. Riñen CEBU CITY, February 8 (PIA) -- The Cebu Port Authority approved this year a P12M budget allocation to purchase more closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras inside the port premises to strengthen security operations within the area. CPA Director Oscar Lopez who heads the Port Security Safety and Environmental Management Department bared this during a recent PIA kapihan that tackled the topic “Strengthening Port Security to Boost Tourism.” Lopez said there are already around 50 CCTV cameras inside the port premises which are being supplied by their service contractors. “ T h e C PA w a n t s a d d i t i o n a l CCTV cameras to be placed in other strategic areas inside the port. This is part of strengthening our security measures to ensure that peace and order is maintained within our territorial jurisdiction,” Lopez declared. Lopez said the installation of additional CCTV cameras will be done within the second quarter this year. The CPA director also boasted
EARTHQUAKE AFTERMATH BROKEN BRIDGE: Broken bridge in Tayasan town. that since illegal squatters and tricycad drivers were removed just outside their fence, crime incidence rate significantly declined. Cebu is a popular tourist destination and “we do not want to taint its image with news that tourist-passengers going and leaving the ports are being
victimized by snatchers and holduppers,” Lopez stressed. Lopez said the CPA is continuously doing its best to improve its image and provide highly-efficient world-class services to the public. (mbcn/fcr/PIACebu)
Coastal clean-up drive yields almost 100K of trash in Cebu coastal town By Hazel F. Gloria CEBU CITY, (PIA) -- Nearly 100 kilos of trash mostly plastics were collected by over 200 volunteers in a coastal cleanup drive conducted in Olango Island Wildlife Sanctuary, Lapulapu City, Cebu last February 2 in celebration of the World Wetlands Day (WWD). DENR-7 regional executive director Maximo O. Dichoso said, “garbage in our beaches and in our waterways is posing a potential threat or danger to our marine resources where we rely on for food and livelihood.” Dichoso said, "We want to make sure of the integrity of our coastal resources by way of a coastal cleanup by soliciting the help of the communities and other stakeholders as it is important
to increase their level of awareness on the effects of garbage to our marine resources." February 2 of every year is designated as WWD by the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, also known as the Ramsar Convention. It is also declared the National Wetlands Day by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 74, series of 1999. The WWD this year carries the theme “Wetlands and Tourism.” Wetlands are lands that may be permanently or seasonally inundated. These include lakes and rivers, swamps and marshes, peatlands, estuaries, tidal flats, mangroves and coral reefs, and even man-made sites such as fishponds, rice paddies, and reservoirs. Participants of the coastal cleanup included the Department of Tourism-7
officials, Korean and Taiwanese volunteers, Pook Elementary School, Suba Elementary School, Tinggo Elementary School, Santa Rosa High School, Pangan-an Elementary and National High School, and out of school youths. DENR Secretary Ramon Paje said the Puerto Princesa Underground River best exemplifies this year’s WWD theme as it is a wetland and has long been considered a prime natural jewel for our local tourism, drawing both foreign and local tourists. According to Paje, the underground river is part of a national park that encompasses various interconnecting ecosystems from the mountain to the sea, including forests, inland wetlands like rivers and swamps, and coastal wetlands such as tidal flats and seagrass beds.(fcr/hfg/PIA 7 and DENR-7)
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NEGROS ORIENTAL
EARTHQUAKE AFTERMATH: The earthquake left marks of destruction in Negros Oriental. (PIA-7)
P33-B needed for infra damaged by Sendong, Feb 6 quake By Jennifer C. Tilos
N E G R O S O R I E N TA L , Dumaguete City, Feb. 9 (PIA) -- The total cost of repairs to damaged bridges in the province brought by Sendong and the recent earthquake will amount to P33 billion, according to Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson. In a National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) meeting held recently with President Benigno Aquino III in Dumaguete City, Singson reported that of the total 13 bridges damaged, three had collapsed completely. The three bridges totally damage occurred in barangay Martilo, La Libertad; Pangaluan, Jimalalud; and Tinayonan, Guihulngan, Singson said during an NDRRMC meeting here. The teams checked the national roads and bridges including public buildings on its structural integrity and stability in preparation for the rehabilitation of infrastructures enough to withstand high-magnitude earthquakes. Secretary Singson ordered that immediate restoration works be initiated immediately to open up the impassable national roads to traffic. Singson also ordered DPWH field engineers and maintenance crew to install temporary bridges and footbridges while replacing other damaged roads and bridges in the areas of Guihulngan, Jimalalud, Ayungon, and Tayasan. (mbcn/jct/PIA)
PNoy instructs DPWH to restore road network in NegOr By Hazel G. Gloria
NEGROS ORIENTAL, Feb 8 (PIA) – President Benigno Aquino III has directed the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials to submit next week the connectivity plan to restore the road network destroyed by the 6.9 magnitude earthquake that hit Negros Oriental on February 6. During the disaster management meeting with the President today, DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson said, the agency will mobilize 15 teams composed of engineers, local government units and national government agencies to assess and inspect the roads, bridges, schools and other establishments for the safety of people. Thirteen bridges on the national road were damaged in Negros Oriental due to the earthquake that hit the province on Feb 6, Singson said. On the other hand, Department of Telecommunications Secretary Mar
Roxas reported that there are two (2) coast guard vessels and one (1) helicopter deployed in affected areas to bring the relief goods and rescue teams to La Libertad and Guihulngan City. Roxas committed to repair ports of the province if needed. He is just waiting for the report coming from the Cebu Port Authority. Relief goods for the victims and rescue teams from Cebu arrived today in Guihulngan through the Philippine Navy, said Secretary Dinky Soliman of the Department of Social Welfare and Development. Phivolcs chief Dr. Renato Solidum presented the tsunami hazard map of NegOr during the disaster management meeting. He also explained the movement of the earthquake and the things to prepare if an earthquake occur in an area. (mbcn/ hfg/PIA-7)
PNoy turns over P5.7-M for cash for work in NegOr
By Jennifer C. Tilos DUMAGUETE CITY, Feb. 9 (PIA) -- During his Feb. 8 visit to quake-hit Negros Oriental, Pres. Benigno Aquino III turned over a check worth P5.7 million to Gov. Roel Degamo for the cash for work program to assist families displaced by recent earthquake in the province. Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Sec. Dinky Soliman said the financial aid aims to help the victims get cash in exchange for cleaning up the rubbles and premises in the quake's aftermath. Sec. Soliman said Guihulngan City, the hardest hit area, and La Libertad town received its cash for work assistance separately in the amounts of P3.3 million and P1.3 million, respectively. The check from the president is for other affected municipalities of Tayasan, Jimalalud and other neighboring towns. Also, the DSWD has so far provided P2.5 million worth of relief assistance which include food, mats, blankets, tents, batteries, and 20 units of generators. Evacuees who will participate in the cash-for-work program will also provide support for the repair and reconstructions of roads, bridges and public buildings. (rmn/JCT/PIA-Negros Oriental)
BOHOL
INFOBYTES COMMUNITYNEWS
Farm marketing centers up for 4 ARC towns soon By Rey Anthony Chiu TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol (PIA) – Agrarian reform’s integrated support for stirring the rural economy can never be more eloquently manifested that its slowly rising bagsakan centers with a wider scope now. Officially termed Agricultural Information and Marketing Center (AIM-C) for Agrarian Reform Communities (ARCs), the complex of the Bagsakan Centers also annex in them information and marketing center and offices. While these structures sprouting in the country sides complement the government’s initiatives at perking up rural economies through increased
spending, their effects to agricultural economic revolution and jumpstarting the engines for progress is undeniable. Other than the AIM-C, Department of Agrarian Reform’s (DAR) implementation of the country’s flagship social justice program in the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program with Extension and Reforms brings to four towns in Bohol stimulus funds through the foreign funded Agrarian Reform Infrastructure Support Program (ARISP III). The ARISP brings out counterpart funds for construction of irrigation and drainage facilities, post harvest facilities, farm to market roads, potable water supply development, institutional development and project administration,
Bohol group offers P50K reward for info on oil-spill culprit By Rey Anthony Chiu
TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol (PIA) – The Bohol Coastal Resource Management Task Force (BCRMTF) proposed to the Bohol Provincial Capitol its offer of a P50,000 reward for anyone who can lead authorities into identifying the culprit behind the reported oil spill into the waters off Danajon Double Barrier Reef. The offer came amid continuing investigation on the oil spill in the said reef located off the northern part of the province. Gov. Edgar Chatto already called for an investigation on the reported oil-spill as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) sent an environmental disaster assessment and probe team to the affected area last Thursday. According to the probe team which consolidated their post-mission findings earlier this week, they believed the culprits dumped around 600 liters of used oil in the affected area. The team also said they documented the oil spill to be affecting around 1.450 kilometers, despite the fact that the area is exposed to interisland currents and strong winds. Beyond circumstantial evidence of a vessel allegedly dumping the oil, not one in the area could positively identify the culprit as yet, according to
probe team members. The team however believed that there could be somebody out fishing that night who could have seen the dumping as their initial investigations yielded no witnesses so far. But Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer Nestor Canda expressed firm belief that there could be somebody who could have seen the vessel dumping used oil on that fateful night. “We still need to go to other neighboring islands to urge fishermen who were out that night to come out in the open and report what they saw. The reward may encourage them,” Canda said. “We only noticed the oil on the shorelines of Bilangbilangan Dako early morning of January 7, so it had been dumped the evening before,” he said in Cebuano. According to Canda, anyone helping the probe team and the council would be recommended for witness protection to ensure his safety. Two weeks ago, environmental advocates in Bohol expressed alarm over reports that an oil spill was fast spreading near Jao and Bilang-bilangan Dako islets off Bien Unido Bohol. (fcr/ rahc/PIA-Bohol)
according to ARISP III website. “The logic is simple. You open up farm to market roads to make these areas accessible to development. Then you also open up information and marketing centers to production can be adjusted to demands while storage facilities also keep these harvests in a place where there is lesser chances of wastage,” explains project engineer into building these structures. This also opens for Alicia, Balilihan, Catigbian and Danao the chance to access support funds from Japan Bank for International Cooperation of its the AIM-C Post Harvest Facilities (PHF). While several Bagsakan Centers have drastically altered the rural landscapes all over the country in the past years, these have been funded by the country’s agricultural modernization funds which have already dripped to a stop. In Alicia, the Central Project M o n i t o r i n g O ff i c e ( C P M O ) h a s recommended revisions for its 72 square meter warehouse’s detailed design and program of works as proposed by the LGU following October 28’s survey. ARISP spends for the warehouse building construction while the local government spends for the display center and office in the AIM-C. In Balilihan, its municipal AIM-C has already a P2.75M and construction is ongoing at pegs a 50% accomplishment, the building project utilized the LGU counterpart funds, and opting not to use the standard design furnished by the project proponents. Here, the LGU puts up P2M for the project while ARISP III gives in the P750K. Another P8.6M similar structure rises in Catigbian after the ARISP and LGU can agree on implementing the revisions recommended by project consultants for the structure’s detailed design and program of work. Like Balilihan, Catigbian also opted not to follow the standard design for these projects. Soon, another AIM-C PHF will rise in Danao, that is, after the feasibility study is completed and all the necessary requirements in place and complied with.
INFOBYTES COMMUNITYNEWS
SIQUIJOR
LGUs given until March 23 for LGPMS data entries, updates By Rizalie Anding Calibo
SIQUIJOR, Feb 20 (PIA) -- Local government units only have until March 23, 2012 to enter and update data in the local governance performance management system (LGPMS) web
database. Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG)-Siquijor officer-in-charge Kenneth Kilat said a DILG memorandum advised LGUs that the LGPMS online data capture form
(DCF) for 2011 is now available, so that LGPMS LGU-data encoders can now enter data or information into the system. The LGPMS is an online tool that assesses LGU performance in the areas of administrative, social, economic and environmental governance. It also included assessment on the fundamentals of governance which include transparency, participation and financial accountability, Kilat said. GUs that fail to enter data to the said database will not be able to generate an LGPMS electronic report, the Memo also said. Kilat said that the LGPMS can help in preparation of annual reports by automatically generating data such as state of local governance performance, state of local development, and financial performance. To ensure the completion and validation of data entries within the prescribed timeline, the DILG has advised the local government operation officers or LGPMS focal persons to provide assistance to the LGUs within their jurisdiction. (mbcn/rac/PIASiquijor)
EARTHQUAKE IN CEBU: PANIC. People in Cebu City pour out into the streets after the tsunami alert level was raised early in the afternoon yesterday. (PIA-7)
Search for TOSP launched in Central Visayas By Jennifer C. Tilos The Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) can now nominate graduating students who are outstanding in academic and co- and extra-curricular activities in their its respective schools. Colleges and universities are urged to send their nominations on or before March 23 to the following designated offices: For Negros Oriental and Siquijor, nomination forms can be obtained at the Great Physician Rehabilitation Foundation, Inc. (GPRehab), SL Teves Subdivision, Calindagan, Dumaguete City. Contact person is Rolando Villamero Jr. Contact peron in Cebu is Marnie Racaza, CHED Region VII Office, National Government Center, Sudlon, Lahug, Cebu City. In Bohol, one may get in touch with European Union Realising DREAMS Project, Provincial Planning and Development Office, Bohol Provincial Capitol, Tagbilaran City. TOSP nomination forms can also be downloaded at www.tospac.org or email the aforementioned contact persons for more information. After all the nominations have been submitted, a screening process will be done to determine the top 20 finalists who will undergo a three-day formation workshop and final interview on April 29 – May 1, 2012 in Dumaguete City. TOSP is an Awards and Formation Program that seeks to galvanize the youth into nation building through exemplary academic performance, change-making social involvement, and inspiring leadership services to their school, local communities, and the country. Since 1961, TOSP has been a laboratory of great leaders. In its roster are the likes of church luminaries Bishop Antonio Ledesma and Fr. Manoling Francisco, good governance icons Rene Saguisag and Raul Roco, social development gurus Vicky Pineda-Garchitorena and Sonia Roco, renowned broadcaster Ricardo Puno, and the current chief of the country’s higher education mandate, Dr. Patricia Licuanan who is the first awardee of the Search. This year, TOSP is in search of that BAYANi student who despite the demands and pressures of higher education, endeavours to serve his country and people; those whose service to the school, community, and nation springs from a genuine desire and passion to make a difference in the lives of many with Every Day Great Examples of heroism. TOSP is in search of the BAYANi within. TOSP is a commitment of RFM Foundation, Commission on Higher Education (CHED), National Book Store, PLDT, and TOSP Alumni Community (TOSP-AC). (mbcn/jct/PIA-NegOr)