TACLOBAN CTIY,
Leyte – Tacloban City Convention Center (TCCC) or more popularly
known as the Tacloban City Coliseum finally opens itself to the people
of Tacloban City and to commerce, Friday (June 23).
The event started with
the celebration of a Holy Mass with Father Ervy Davy Lajara (City
Chaplain), joined by Fr. Randy Raagas, Fr. Virgil Murillo, and Fr.
Rommel Taboso, of the Sto. Niño Parish. It was followed by the
tossing of coins and blessing of the whole place wherein everyone lit
a candle as traditionally done. The cutting of the ribbon was led by
Mayor Alfredo “Bejo” Romualdez assisted by Atty. Victor Tantoco
(Corporate Secretary/Vice-Pres – Postal Bank) and various department
heads of the City Government. The memorable occasion was also graced
by City Officials, Department Heads, businessmen, and employees and
staff of the City Government.
Everyone cannot help
but be awed and amazed as they finally behold the enormity of this
architectural landmark, this future indoor venue for important events
and conventions in the region. Sheer pride and happiness was evident
in the faces of the whole crowd. Indeed, it can be said that the whole
undertaking today was a great success!
A concert, “I Will
Survive” featuring legendary and contemporary artists took center
stage later in the evening, its firsts in the years to come. The City
Mayor was very happy and grateful to all the Taclobanons for this
noble accomplishment of his administration which funding came from the
coffers of the city. “This is not only for Tacloban City but for
the whole region as well”, he further emphasized.
Leyte NGO brings
relief aid to displaced families in Samar
Press Release
By
Leyte
Center
for Development, Inc.
June 25, 2006
SAN JOSE DE BUAN,
Samar – At least 325 peasant families affected by armed conflict
benefited from the relief effort launched here by the
Leyte Center for
Development, Inc. (LCDE) June 21.
The beneficiaries came
from Babaclayon, Aguingayan, San Pedro, Cataydungan, Hagbay, Hibacaan
and Gusa – the villages in San Jose de Buan hardest hit by armed
clashes between the military and the communist rebels.
Food packs which
consisted of rice, sardines and other vital provisions such as salt,
sugar, soap and plastic mat were given to the beneficiaries during the
relief delivery operation. The relief aid was granted by the United
Nations’ Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Jazmin Jerusalem, LCDE
Executive Director, said that the relief mission was conducted to give
immediate assistance to the victims who are already experiencing food
shortage.
“The relief mission
was our response to the request of the local government of San Jose de
Buan and the village chiefs to extend relief aid to the affected
families. We received information that the victims are in dire need of
food and material assistance,” Jerusalem said.
It was learned that
the victims evacuated their villages early this year due to the
intense armed clashes. Most of them have not yet returned to their
communities for fear for their lives. They are presently taking
shelter with their relatives in the town proper and in other
neighboring villages.
To date, this was the
second relief effort the LCDE has launched in San Jose de Buan. The
agency conducted its first relief operation last December 14 where it
served 350 families from eight barrios who fled their homes due to
incidents of abuses allegedly perpetrated by the military.
The Leyte Center for
Development, Inc. is a non-government organization assisting natural
and man-made disaster-stricken communities in Eastern Visayas. Its
programs range from disaster preparedness and mitigation, emergency
response, rehabilitation assistance, advocacy and community health.
The agency has already served more than 24,000 families from 455
communities in 32 municipalities in the region.
We need government support to fight
CPP-NPA – Lt. Col. Lacurom
By BONG PEDALINO, (PIA Southern
Leyte)
June 24, 2006
LILOAN, Southern Leyte
– The Commanding Officer of the 43rd Infantry Battalion of the
Philippine Army based in barangay Hibod-Hibod, Sogod, this province
has welcomed the announcement of the Commander-In-Chief, President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, to commit a P1 Billion fund to finish the
communist-led insurgency in a much shorter timeline of two years in
the country.
"Itong announcement ni
Pangulong Arroyo ay welcome sa amin ito lalo na sa mga kasundalohan.
We have a commitment to serve the country, we know our mandate, and we
are doing our best in order for all of us to achieve lasting peace and
order in our country, especially in Southern Leyte," Lt. Col. Mario
Lacurom, 43rd IB Commander said when sought for his reaction on the
so-called "Isabela initiative" at barangay Fatima this town.
Lacurom and his men
were in barangay Fatima in this municipality June 21 to attend and
provide security for the blessing and turn-over rites of an
eight-classroom school building complex sponsored by GMA Kapuso
Foundation together with Habitat for Humanity intended for the
displaced residents of barangay Malangza.
GMA 7 TV News Anchor
Mel Tiangco, the Chief Executive Office of Kapuso Foundation and top
Executives of Habitat for Humanity were the special guests, along
local officials led by Gov. Rosette Lerias.
"Kailangan namin ito,
yung financial support ng gobyerno, para ipag-bili ng mga gamit namin
sa pakikidigma sa mga kalaban natin particularly sa CPP-NPA," Lt. Col.
Lacurom added.
The local Army Chief,
whose area of operation covered the entire
Southern Leyte extending to parts of the 5th District of Leyte from
Matalom to Baybay towns, singled out the need to acquire equipment and
transport service facilities, saying they encountered difficulty in
the maintenance cost of existing ones.
Lacurom also said he
was no longer surprised with the announcement of the President
inasmuch as they have been airing their needs and submitted the
corresponding budget requirements to their higher-ups for "new items
to replace the old ones to sustain the momentum."
He allayed fears the
money may be used nowhere, stressing that the present leadership was
concerned with the welfare of the men in the field, in the frontlines.
And if President
Arroyo foresees the job done in two year’s time, Lt. Col. Lacurom
batted for a much shorter time-frame as soon as they get their fair
share of the newly delivered combat paraphernalia.
"Within my area of
responsibility kung makukuha natin sa three months lalong mas maigi,"
he said.
Solon adds P1-M fund for Samar scholars
By NINFA BARCENA-QUIRANTE, (PIA
Samar)
June 24, 2006
CATBALOGAN, Samar –
Samar Representative Catalino "Cata" Figueroa added another one
million pesos fund for his CHED-Congressional Scholars in the second
district of Samar.
Figueroa bared this
information during the turn-over rites at the DepEd Samar Division
from Superintendent Teotimo Orbeso to Superintendent Niña Villalon.
In the ceremonies
attended by both representatives of Samar Figueroa along with
Congressman Reynaldo Uy, the latter advised the would be scholars to
grab the opportunity and make good in their studies, because, he said,
it is only education that will free them from poverty.
Earlier, Figueroa
funded some 121 scholars and just in March some 13 beneficiaries have
graduated.
Aside from the 121
scholars, another 55 slots were offered. The first 15 qualifiers had
their budget good for 4-year courses while the remaining 40 slots were
good for one school year.
Just this June, a
total of 200 scholars will enjoy their funding from the 1M peso
allocation from the congressman.
As a CHED-Congressional
scholar, each student is given P1 thousand for tuition fee and another
P 1,500.00 for his allowance. The scholar gets P5,000.00 a year.
The applicant should
maintain an average grade of 85 to qualify; the extension office of
the Congressman said.
Aside from the
financial assistance, the solon also promised 'his scholars' that he
would assist them in job placement after graduation.
The extension office
of the congressman also distributes personal computers to schools,
Cata bared.
As of this writing,
one congressional staff told PIA that some 100 slots have not been
taken yet. He just advises them to check on the Extension office of
the congressman in Mercedes, Catbalogan.
The student does not
necessarily have to be enrolled only in
Samar, he can pursue his studies anywhere in the
Philippines, but the
applicant must be a resident of the second district of Samar.
Verified signatures in
So. Leyte lone district reaches 13%
By BONG PEDALINO, (PIA Southern
Leyte)
June 24, 2006
MAASIN CITY, Southern
Leyte – Except the town of Hinunangan, the number of signatures
pushing on a people’s initiative to amend the Constitution for the
lone Congressional District of Southern Leyte as verified by the
Commission on Elections (Comelec) field offices has reached a total of
27,490 individual registered voters as of June 19, 2006, records at
the provincial Comelec office showed.
Based on the May 10,
2004 synchronized polls,
Southern Leyte province had 209,527 total registered voters, and so the
verified signatures represented 13% of the overall total.
The law required at
least 3% of the registered voters in every legislative district to
have consented by way of affixing their signatures, duly checked by
the Comelec, for any people’s initiative move to be considered, but at
the national level the rate was raised to 12%.
At the minimum 3%
rate, the lone Congressional District of Southern Leyte had to gather
only some 6,286 signatures for compliance, but the latest tally had
more than quadrupled the basic requirement for a sum of 27,490, or an
equivalent of 13%.
The number of
identical signatures per local government unit (LGU) was as follows:
Bontoc – 3,903; Saint Bernard – 624; San Francisco – 2,292; San Juan –
1,200; San Ricardo – 1,146; Sogod – 484; Tomas Oppus – 3,586;
Hinundayan – 120; Libagon – 724; Liloan – 97; Limasawa – 851; Macrohon
– 3,350; Malitbog – 3,565; Padre Burgos – 1,485; Pintuyan – 549;
Silago – 761; and Anahawan – 136.
A Clerk at the
provincial Comelec texted the Election Registrar of Hinunangan for the
outcome in that town, but as this report was written there was still
no respond.
For Maasin City, the
ongoing tally of verified signatures was 2,617, according to Ronnie
Segovia, a personnel at the city Comelec office. Southern Leyte
province consists of 18 towns and one city.
President Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo, in her speech marking the 108th Independence Day
celebration last week, hinted that a day of reckoning on Charter
Change was fast approaching.
“Our people will soon
be called upon to make a decision that can bring an end to the
political deadlocks that have stalled our efforts to take our nation
to the next level.
“The choice is for us
to make whether we continue to live up to the vision of our national
heroes or continue to watch helplessly while our political system
degenerates and our economy is trapped in the mire of uncertainty,”
she said.
Food for the School
Program, successful in the region
By GEMMA TABAO, (PIA 8)
June 24, 2006
TACLOBAN CITY,
Leyte – The implementation of
the Food for the School Program in the
Eastern Visayas region for the school year 2005-2006 was considered
successful, according to the reports gathered from the Department of
Education Nutritionist, Renalda Salar.
According to Salar,
some 146 schools regionwide with a total of 5,326 pupils coming from
the pre-elementary and grade 1 levels have availed of the program.
These recipient
schools are from the municipalities of Macrohon and Limasawa in the
province of Southern Leyte, Tarangnan for Samar, Tunga and Mahaplag
for the Leyte province, Mercedes and Salcedo in Eastern Samar, and,
San Vicente and San Roque for the
province of
Northern Samar.
However, Salar added,
since hunger is being considered as an urgent problem which needs to
be addressed immediately, rice distribution was then extended until
summer of 2006. She likewise bared the good news that rice fortified
with iron were the ones distributed since February last year, to help
combat iron-deficiency malnutrition.
The Food for the
School Program of Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a school-based
package of comprehensive immediate interventions for families and
children who suffer hunger and malnutrition. The beneficiaries were
identified based on the 2005 Hunger Survey, of which Visayas was rated
13.3% and Region 8 categorized as vulnerable.
Coordinated by the
Department of Education, National Food Authority and the Department of
Social Welfare and Development, the program provided pre-elementary
and Grade 1 pupils an assistance of one kilo of rice for each day of
attendance in school.
Aside from food,
health services and other developmental support and family involvement
activities were also developed and provided to these identified
beneficiaries.
With the
implementation of the program, cases of absenteeism dropped, and an
increase in weights of some pupils were observed based on the latest
weight validation. The DepEd then hopes that its sustainability will
help attain an improved attendance and school performance of pupils,
and foremost, it will prevent further decline of the nutritional
status of young learners.
On the
United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture