One Mindanao - September 13, 2011

2 ONE MINDANAO Tuesday, September 13, 2011

C O N T E N T SNATIONAL• Aquino to meet transport organizations on Wednesday• Malacanang says President has full trust and confidence on Delima• Palace congratulates Shamcey Supsup for placing third runner up in 2011 Miss Universe Pageant• Aquino appoints Suratos as new member of BSP Monetary Board• Aquino to keynote 1st Integrity Summit

Northeastern Mindanao (Caraga)

• Sen. Revilla vows to help upgrade Surigao Airport• Caraga RDC meeting tackles LGU and private sector concerns• Carmen amends municipality revenue code • Sumayajaw Festival in Jabonga goes full blast• Coop members undergo conflic

Western Mindanao (Zamboanga Peninsula)

• Bloodletting highlights national reservist week celeb in Dipolog• DOH encourages parents to avail of free immunization program of gov’t• AFP joins MEDCAP in Talisayan, Mariki• Nominees for ARRM’s regional legislative assembly sign covenant for good governance • Zambo City gears up for “Hermosa Festival 2011”

Northern Mindanao

• 24 Lanao Sur candidates to the RLA of ARMM present their platforms in today’s public forum• 4ID soldiers garner medals in sports competition• Fire razes 91 houses, affects 192 households in Iligan• Cebuano News: SP sa siyudad naghangyo nga ipatuman ang slope protection system sa mga road development and expansion projects • Cebuano News: Mayor Cruz nadasig sa maayong performance sa Iligan diha sa DILG LPGMS report

Southern Mindanao (Davao Region)• DOLE sees zero strikes for 2011• NEDA-XI clarifies reports on Austrian bridges• Reappointed USEP prexy charts school’s growth• Comval launches Unified Telecom System for Disaster Preparedness and Safety• TAGUM CITY to host National IP conclave in October 2011

Central Mindanao (SOCSKSARGEN)

•Provincial board authorizes guv to loan P30 M for school buildings• T’boli women disclose benefits from 4Ps • Tagalog News: Rep. Avance-Fuentes ipaglalaban ang programang mag-aangat ng kabuhayan ng mahihirap• Tagalog News: Mga ina sa T’boli pinatunanayang nakatutulong ang 4PS na mapabuti ang kanilang kalagayan • Cebuano News: Iligan, usa sa top 10 best performing highly urbanized cities sa nasud, base sa DILG report

OUR COVER:

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EDITORIAL STAFF

An Electronic News Magazine published daily by Philippine Information Agency (PIA)

Mindanao Clusters

Executive Editor ……......... EFREN F. ELBANBUENA Cluster Head, Southern, Western and Central Mindanao Regional Director, PIA Region XI

Managing Editor ……......... ABNER M. CAGA Cluster Head, Northern and Northeastern Mindanao Regional Director, PIA Caraga Region

Associate Editors ……....... OLIVIA T. SUDARIA Regional Director, PIA Region XII NOEMI A. EDAGA Regional Director, PIA Region IX

RUTCHIE C. AGUHOB Officer-in-charge,PIARegionX

Regional Desk Editors …... Jocelyn P. Alvarez, PIA Region IX Elaine O. Ratunil, PIA Region X Rudolph Ian G. Alama, PIA Region XI Danny E. Doguiles, PIA Region XII Robert E. Roperos, PIA Caraga Region Nora CL Molde, PIA Caraga Region

Copy Editor ……………….. Robert E. Roperos, PIA Caraga Region

Layout Artists ……………... Gerie Mae G. Coco, PIA Caraga Region Richard D. Atillo, PIA Caraga Region Emmanuel D. Gonzales, PIA Caraga Region

Editorial Advisers ……….... ATTY. JOSE A. FABIA Director-General Philippine Information Agency

SEC. HERMINIO “Sonny” B. COLOMA PresidentialCommunicationsOperationsOffice

PHOTO CREDITS: alritz escorido edwin gales jasmine perez ray geonzon

allan barredodani doguilesjakarta herald

3ONE MINDANAOTuesday, September 13, 2011

President Benigno S. Aquino III will meet the transport sec-tor on Wednesday to listen to their concerns in the midst of continuous increase in petroleum prices, Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said Tuesday.

Aquino to meet transport organizations on Wednesday

But Lacierda, clari-fied during the regular press briefing in Mala-canang that the Presi-dent didn’t call for the meeting to avert an im-pending strike warned by major transport or-ganizations in the coun-try. “Tingan muna na-tin ang dayalogo bukas. Kung ayaw nilang mag-paawat, and I hope they are being responsible with their statement, we are very, very open to a discussion of their con-cerns; with their issues. Di po makikipagpulong sa kanila si Pangulo, da-hil sa takot sa transport strike,” Lacierda said when asked about the strike.

“May batas po tay-ong sinusundan, sila po ay may hawak na prang-kisa so alam nila ang obligasyon at responsi-bilidad bilang isang hu-mahawak ng prangkisa. There are consequenc-es to their actions,” he added. Lacierda also de-fended the Pantawid Pasada program of the government saying that the Palace is open for a discussion with the transport sector regard-ing their concerns with the program. While some drivers are complaining about not having received the government support, Lacierda said there’s a lot of transport opera-

tors who have availed of the Pantawid Pasada program of the admin-istration. The Palace spokes-man also said he can’t tell about the possible second tranche of the Pantawid Pasada pro-gram, asking the public to wait for the result of the meeting on Wednes-day that will definitely tackle the government support program. At the same time, Lacierda said they are expecting all the trans-port groups to sit down with the President dur-ing the meeting includ-ing militant transport organizations, adding the administration has not favored one organi-

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zation over the other. Lacierda also said the President also met with other con-

cerned agencies Tues-day in preparation for Wednesday’s meet-ing with the transport

groups adding that the President wants to in-volve all the agencies concerned. (AS)

Malacañang says President has full trust and confidence on Delima

Malacañang assured that President Benigno S. Aquino III has his full trust and confidence on Justice Secretary Leila de Lima amid calls from some groups for her to step down cit-

ing failure to file charges against erring government officials spe-cifically from the previous administration In a regular press briefing at the Palace on Tuesday, Presiden-tial Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said that the President upholds con-fidence on the Justice Secretary as manifested by her frequent atten-dance to meetings in the Palace especially on legal issues concerning the government. “The President maintains his confi-dence on Secretary Lei-la de Lima, she’s always called during meetings in the Palace,” Lacierda said. Lacierda made it clear that Secretary De Lima is focused on her responsibilities saying that it’s just that the

government is taking actions meticulously, especially in gathering sufficient pieces of evi-dence before filing cas-es against unscrupulous public officials before the Office of the Om-budsman. “I understand the impatience of some groups but we have to be very prudent in the way we gather evidence, I can very well tell you that Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima has been hard at work, in fact she was with us in this morning’s meeting with the President,” Lacierda said. Lacierda also said that the Aquino admin-istration is not singling

out anyone in filing nec-essary cases adding that such charges will be filed depending on the evidences gathered. A group of 30 in-dividuals led by a radio program anchor gath-ered in front of the De-partment of Justice on Monday assailing the Justice Secretary for al-leged poor performance in failing to resolve graft and plunder charges against a former Presi-dent. The group called for De Lima to step down from her post for alleged failure to file charges against those who have plundered the country during the previous ad-ministration. (JCL)

Aquino to meet...from page 3


Palace congratulates Shamcey Supsup for placing third runner up in 2011 Miss Universe Pageant

Malacañang congratulated Ms. Shamcey Supsup Tuesday for winning third runner-up in the 2011 Miss Universe Pageant held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, saying her feat brings honor and

pride for the country. “The humility, intel-lect, and grace that you exhibited during the com-petition embodied the spir-it of the true Filipina; and, in our eyes, that is the

true victory today—that the world stood witness to and found an apprecia-tion for the ideals, values, and beauty that has long characterized our nation,”

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a statement on Tuesday. “May this triumph serve as a way for other nations to come to appre-

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ciate not just the beauty of our people, but that of our country. On behalf of the Filipino people, we are proud of you; and we see even greater things ahead for you,” Lacierda stressed. Leila Lopes from An-gola was crowned Miss Uni-verse Monday night. Lopes is Angola’s first winner beating 88 other competi-tors to win the title during the 60th anniversary of the Ms. Universe pageant. She replaces last year’s

winner, Ximena Navarrete of Mexico. The first runner-up was 23-year-old Olesia Stefanko of Ukraine, while second runner-up was Priscila Machado of Brazil and the fourth Miss China. During the question and answer portion, Sup-sup answered her ques-tion without a translator when asked: “Would you change your religious be-lief to marry the person that you love?” “If I had to change

my religious beliefs, I would not marry the per-son that I love because the first person that I love is God who created me and I have my faith and my principles and this is what makes me who I am. And if that person loves me, he should love my God too,” Supsup said. Supsup also ranked first among the fans in the vote for the top five candidates and second in the swimsuit and evening gown competitions. (AS)

Aquino appoints Suratos as new member of BSP Monetary Board

President Benigno S. Aquino III appointed Armando L. Suratos as a new member of the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sen-tral ng Pilipinas (BSP) replacing Juanita D. Amatong whose

term expired on July 3 this year. According to Presi-dential Spokesman Ed-win Lacierda, who made the announcement Tues-day, Suratos will stay as a member of the Mon-etary Board until July 3, 2017. Suratos was ap-pointed by the President September 9, 2011. Suratos held the position of deputy gov-ernor until December last year and was re-

placed by BSP Assistant Governor and General Counsel Juan de Zu-ñiga Jr. Suratos retired from the BSP December 5, 2010 after serving the central bank for 40 years. Suratos, who holds a law degree from the Ateneo de Ma-nila University, served as technical assistant at the Supreme Court

before joining the cen-tral bank. He ranked eighth in the bar examina-tions when he took it in 1971. He also holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Adminis-tration degree from the University of the Philippines and at-tended Georgetown University in Wash-ington in 1975. (AS)

Palace congratulates...from page 5


Aquino to keynote 1st Integrity Summit

President Benigno S. Aquino III will be the guest of honor and keynote speaker at the 1st Integrity Summit that will be held at the Grand Ballroom of the Marriott Hotel in Pasay City on

Wednesday (September 14).

The Summit, with the theme “Cultivating a Culture of Integrity in Business and Be-yond,” brings together local and global corpo-rate leaders, anti-cor-ruption experts, and senior government of-ficials to present global trends in ethics com-pliance programs, as well as concrete ways to strengthen ethical business practices in the Philippines. It aims to gather experts and authorities to present ways on how to strengthen ethical business practices and institutionalize them so that “business with ethics” becomes the country’s norm, rather than the exception. The event dovetails with the President’s battle cry – “Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap”. It is the first con-ference ever to be or-ganized in the Philip-

pines along this theme, and it will also analyze global trends in the fight against corruption and how countries stack up in this battle, and will provide industry and company-specific ini-tiatives in keeping cor-ruption at a bay. The Summit is or-ganized by the Integri-ty Initiative -- a nation-wide, private sector led campaign that institu-tionalizes common eth-ical standards among various sectors of so-ciety. The Initiative is implemented by the Makati Business Club (MBC) and the Euro-pean Chamber of Com-merce of the Philippines (ECCP), in partnership with the Management Association of the Phil-ippines (MAP), Ameri-can Chamber of Com-merce (Amcham), and the Asian Institute of Management-Hills Gov-ernance Center (AIM).

As the Summit’s highlight, the private sector will launch the Unified Code of Con-duct for business in the presence of President Benigno S. Aquino III. Joining the Presi-dent will be Vice Pres-ident Jejomar Binay, Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima, Ramon Del Rosario - Chairman, Integ-rity Summit & Makati Business Club; Hubert D’ Aboville, president, European Cham-ber of Commerce in the Philippines; Fe-lino Palafox, Jr., Vice Chairman, Integrity Initiative and presi-dent Management As-sociation of the Phil-ippines; Fe Zamora, Vice President, Amer-ican Chamber of Com-merce of the Philip-pines and Edilberto de Jesus, President, Asian Institute of Management.(RCK)


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Sen. Revilla vows to help upgrade Surigao AirportSURIGAO CITY, Sept. 13 (PIA) - Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla, Jr. expressed support for the expansion of the Surigao City Airport.

“Your airport’s runway is too short,” Revilla, chair of both Public Works and Public Services com-mittees, said during a press conference here on September 10. Data from the Civil Aviation Au-thority of the Phil-ippines (CAAP) re-vealed that the

current length of the airport’s runway is only 1,708 meters and needs an addi-tional 400 meters to accommodate an airbus. He sa id tha t he w i l l he lp i n l obby-i ng th i s concern to the na t i ona l gov-ernment . “We w i l l s tudy the poss i -b i l i t y o f expand -

i ng the runway o r even t rans fe r ing i t t o a new s i t e ,” Re -v i l l a . Mayor Matu -gas sa id th i s w i l l improv ing the economy and p ro -mote tour i sm, no t jus t Sur igao C i ty, bu t i n the en t i r e p rov ince as we l l . (PIA-Sur igao de l Norte)

by FEAbkilan

Caraga RDC meeting tackles LGU and private sector concernsSURIGAO CITY, Sept. 13 (PIA) - The executive committee of the Regional Development Council (RDC) of Caraga met recently to discuss the creation of an oversight committee and the establishment of a science high school in the province, among others.


The RDC, chaired by Gov. Sol Matugas, also tack-led priority con-cerns of the council for 2011-2013 in-cluding concerns of the private sector. There was also a proposal to con-duct a study on the impact of the Pan-tawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program.

A lso de l iberat-ed in that meet ing were the turn-over of cha i rmanship of Lake Main i t Deve l-opment A l l iance af ter the res ig-nat ion of LMDA Program Direc-tor Ka iser Recabo, proposed t ra in ing program for LGUs, and RDC Act iv i-t ies in the coming

months. Other act iv i-t ies d iscussed were the inv i ta-t ion to part ic ipate in the t rave l to Is-rae l , and Mindan-ao One Trade and Tour ism Exhib i t in Mani la on October 2011. (PPDO-Su-rigao del Norte/PIA-Surigao del Norte)

Carmen amends municipality revenue code

AGUSAN DEL NORTE, Sept. 13 (PIA) - Local officials of Car-men, Agusan del Norte have proposed amendments to the 2003 Municipal Revenue Code.

Jay Vincent V. Demain

Th i s new code a ims t o ra i s e r ev -enues f o r t he mu -n i c i pa l i t y t h rough an i n c r ease i n bus i nes s t axes , f ee s f o r s e rv i c e s and r en ta l ra t e s f o r mun i c i pa l gov -e rnmen t p rope r -t i e s .

The SP Com -mi t t ee on Ways and Means cha i r ed by Boa rd Mem -be r J o seph E . To -maneng who r e c -ommended f o r i t s app rova l c i t ed A r -t i c l e 281 o f R .A . 7160 as i t s bas i s wh i ch a l l ows l o ca l

gove rnmen t un i t s ( LGUs ) t o ad ju s t t he i r t ax ra t e s once i n eve ry f i ve yea r s bu t no t t o exceed t en pe r -cen t (10%) o f t he p rev i ous ra t e s . (LGU-Agusan de l N o r t e / P I A - A g u -san de l Nor te)

Sen. Revilla vows...from page 8


Sumayajaw Festival in Jabonga goes full blastAGUSAN DEL NORTE, Sept. 13 (PIA) -- The 10th Sumayajaw Festival in the Municipality of Jabonga has gone full blast as various activities were held in different parts of the town to mark the event. The festival is an annual celebration in honor of the patron saint Nuestra Senora de la Assuncion.

Thousands of Ja-bonganons trooped to the Municipal Plaza Square recently to see the biggest crowd-drawers of the fest iv-i ty, the 10th Sumaya-jaw Festival street dancing. It kicked-off with the parade of 1l con-t ingents around the town wearing dif fer-ent colors of costumes and bringing also with them different forms of props and para-phernal ia to add at-tract ion to their pre-sentation. The competition was divided into 2 cat-egories: A & B. Cate-gory A was composed of contingents from the different chapels

of five barangays: San Vicente Ferrer Chapel, Brgy. Magdagooc; San Nicolas Chapel, Brgy. Colorado; Divine Mer-cy Chapel, Sitio Coro, Brgy. Colorado; San Vicente Ferrer Chapel, Brgy. Libas, and Our Lady of the Assump-tion Church, Brgy. Po-blacion. Category B was participated by con-tingents from elemen-tary and high schools: Baleguian Elemen-tary School, Jabonga Central Elementary School, San Vicente National High School, Magdagooc National High School, Cuyago National High School and Jabonga National High School.

P a r t i c i p a n t s danced gracefully as a gesture of thanking their patron for Her intercession for giving them bountiful harvest and protecting them from any potential harm during typhoon or calamity. This year’s festi-val organizers decided to level the prize of twenty thousand pesos to defray the expenses of all contingents. However, special awards were given to Magdagooc National High School for Best in Choreography and Cuyago National High School for Best in Cos-tume. (LGU-Agusan del Norte/PIA-Agu-san del Norte)

by Francisco R. Jayoma


Bloodletting highlights national reservist week celeb in Dipologby Franklin P. Gumapon

DIPOLOG CITY, Sept. 13 (PIA) - A bloodletting activity has capped the 32nd Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) National Reservist Week celebration here recently.

The 101st Infan-try Brigade of the

Philippine Army (PA) based in Del Pilar, Pi-ñan, Zamboanga del Norte in collabora-tion with the Philip-pine National Red Cross (PNRC) and the city government of Dipolog conduct-ed a bloodletting ac-tivity at the city hall compound during the culmination of the re-servist week Sunday.

Local PNRC ad-ministrator Josh-

ua Bicoy disclosed that 58 bags of blood were collected in the said activity.

In a related deve lopment ,

101st brigade com-mander Col. Jet Velarmino under-scored the “impor-tant contributions of the reservist to the overall AFP mission.” He said the reservists have greatly helped in responding to emergencies and

disasters and in the conduct of medical and dental services to the people. The bloodlet-ting activity was attended by army officers and sol-diers, ROTC ca-dets and cadettes, Zamboanga del Norte second dis-trict representa-tive Rosendo S. Labadlabad and Red Cross volun-teers. (FPG/PIA-Zambo. Norte)


DOH encourages parents to avail of free immunization program of gov’tby Jocelyn P. Alvarez

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Sept. 13 (PIA) - Health Department here encourages parents to bring their infants and children ages zero to six years old to their respective health centers or any government health facilities and avail of the free immuniza-tion program of the government. This call was made by Department of Health (DOH) Re-gional Director Dr. Aristides Tan in conso-nance with the recent approval of President Benigno Aquino III of Republic Act (RA) No. 10152 known as “Mandatory Infants and Children Health Immunization Act of 2011.” Tan said parents should take advantage of the program and avail the immuniza-tion which the doctor said is for their chil-dren’s health benefit. Tan explained im-munization frees the children from diseas-es such as measles, polio, hepatitis B and other diseases pre-ventable by vaccines. Tan revealed,

DOH 9 has a budget of P77million per year to include cost for im-munization. He said immu-nization rate now is much higher compared to previous years where only few par-ents bring their chil-dren to health center for immunization. He sa i d t he de -pa r tmen t i s c on t i nu -i ng i t s advocacy t o pa ren t s and gua rd -i an s o f ch i l d r en on t he impo r t ance o f immun i za t i on . He sa id the DOH a ims to immunize 100% of a l l e l ig i -b le in fants and ch i l -dren. The mandatory bas i c immunizat ion fo r a l l in fants and ch i ld ren prov ided under RA No. 10152

inc lude vacc ine-pre -ventab le d i sease: Tubercu los i s ; D iph -ther ia , te tanus and per tuss i s ; po l io -myel i t i s ; meas les; mumps; rube l la or german meas les , hepat i t i s B, in f lu -enza type B(HIB)n and other types as may be determined by the Secretary o f Hea l th . Be f o r e t h e ap -p r ova l o f RA No . 10152 , t h e on l y va c c i n e s g i ven f o r f r e e by t h e gove rn -men t a r e : Ba c i l l e Ca lme t t e Gué r i n ( BCG) , O ra l Po -l i o Va c c i n e (OPV ) , D i ph t he r i a , Pe r -t u s s i s (whoop i ng c ough ) , and Te t anu s (DPT ) a nd meas l e s . ( JPA/PIA 9 -Zam -bo C i t y )


AFP joins MEDCAP in Talisayan, Mariki

ISABELA CITY, Basilan, Sept. 13 (PIA) – Barangays Talisayan and Makiri in Zamboanga City gets medical services from a joint medical and dental civic action program (MEDCAP), the 4th Civil Relations Group of the Armed Forces of the Philip-pines announced. The joint MED-CAP was conducted by San Ramon Power Incorporated, Task Force Zamboanga, 4th CRG, CRSAFP, Philippine National Police and Zamboan-ga City Economic Zone serving around 460 beneficiaries at Barangay Talisayan last September 9. Another MED-CAP activity was also held at Barangay Mariki. These series of MEDCAP activities participated by the military are stil l part of the overall efforts for the AFP’s Internal Peace and Security Plan or “BAYANIHAN,” joining together with the different stake-holders in delivering basic services to the people. Around 400

benefited the medi-cal service alone while around 120 benefited the dental service. Food feed-ing and distribution of used clothing were also conducted. Lt Col Gamal S Hayudini PAF, Group Commander of the 4th CRG, CRSAFP said the AFP firmly acknowledges peo-ple’s support as vital to achieving peace and order. “This joint effort that made this MEDCAP possible is simply a manifesta-tion of our successful campaign for Baya-nihan among the dif-ferent stakeholders,” he said. Hayudini added that Mil itary opera-tions are not the best solution in solving

the problem of law-lessness and insur-gency in the coun-try, “the AFP thru the IPSP recognizes that different govern-ment agencies and civi l society and the people’s contribution are vital and neces-sary to win peace and solve decades-old insurgency prob-lem.” M e a n w h i l e , pa r l o r games we re a l so conduc ted f o r t he k i d s p re sen t a t t he MEDCAP ac t i v -i t y whe re w inne r s we re g i ven spo r t s ba l l s , dog - t ag a c -ces so ry, and o th -e r f un p r i ze s . I PSP Bayan ihan pam -ph l e t s we re a l so d i s t r i bu ted . (JPA/ 4 C R G - A F P / R V C -PIA9 BaSuTa)


Photo Releases:

An Army personnel works hand in hand with a civilian dentist during the Medical and Dental Mission held at Mariki Elementary School. (4CRGAFP/PIA9-BST)

PO2 Nellia I. Rallestan together with PFC Melchor Aloot PA hands out IPSP flyers to the residents of Brgy. Talisayan during the Medical Dental Mission sponsored by San Ramon Power Inc. (4CRGAFP/PIA9-BST)

Tsg. Robert Cabalosa PN (M) hands out IPSP flyers to the residents of Brgy Mariki during a medical dental mission, sponsored by the PCSO in cooperation of Universidad de Zamboanga. (4CRGAFP/PIA9-BST)

PFC Melchor Aloot PA earns a smile from the children who receives the rubber balls at Brgy Talisayan during the medical mission. (4CRGAFP/PIA9-BST). (4CRGAFP/PIA9-BST)


Nominees for ARRM’s regional legislative as-sembly sign covenant for good governance by Gideon C. Corgue

BONGAO, TAWI-TAWI, September 13 (PIA) – To show support to Presi-dent Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III’s good governance program, nomi-nees for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Region-al Legislative Assembly (RLA) on Monday signed a covenant during the public forum conducted by the Department of the Interior and Lo-cal Government (DILG), provincial office at Beachside Inn here. The eight (8) nominees who will-fully signed the cov-enant were Rodolfo A. Bawasanta, Is-mael B. Abubakar Jr., Dayang Carlsum S. Jumaide, Nurjay M. Sujali, Hamid K. Ladjakahal, Abdel-nooh Hadjirul, Syed R. Bederi, and Eddie M. Alih. ARMM Provin-cial Director Julga-bir I. Sappayan said the covenant is a roadmap of national government that will ensure the introduc-tion and sustenance of needed reforms in the ARMM. This roadmap, Sappayan said be-ing pursued relent-lessly and vigor-ously, a package of strategic key action

that includes clean-ing up of electoral process, strength-ening bureaucratic reforms , accelerat-ing service, delivery and implementation of development proj-ects, ensuring good governance bench-mark in ARMM , and fully engaging civil society and people’s organizations in gov-ernment, and maxi-mizing the potential of the government. “This roadmap for good governance shall be carried out in a manner in which the voice, sentiments and concerns of the people of ARMM , the stakeholders, lo-cal officials and even our foreign and local development part-ners are upheld and

respected which are complete expression our strict adherence to the principles of democracy and mak-ing it in the region and for the people of ARMM,” Sappayan opined. The covenant signing concluded the 4-hours public forum with the stake-holders from local officials, people’s or-ganization, civil so-ciety, academe, etc Among those who attended the pub-l ic forum were Phil-ippine Information Agency (PIA-9) re-gional director Noemi B. Edaga, Zamboan-ga City DILG director Taha Arakama, and Bongao Mayor Jasper Que. (JPA/GCC/PIA9-Pagadian)


Zambo City gears up for “Hermosa Festival 2011”

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Sept. 13 (PIA) - The city is in its festive mood as preparations for the grandest festival in Zamboan-ga-the “2011 Zamboanga Hermosa Festival,” is now being undertaken. The month-long festivity is in honor of the city’s Patron saint Nuestra Señora La Virgen Del Pilar, whose feast day is on October 12. City Mayor Celso Lobregat convened concerned offices and agencies of govern-ment including the police and the mili-tary to look into the details with regards to the various activi-ties lined up for the celebration. A committee that will work on the preparations, plan-ning and budget-ting was formally created by the city thru Executive Or-

der No. CL-418-2011 with City Administra-tor Antonio Orendain Jr. as chair and City Tourism Officer Sar-ita Hernandez as co-chair. Ci ty Informa-t ion Off icer Shei-la Covarrubias said the committee was created to ensure a more vibrant, color-fu l and successful f iesta celebrat ion. The annual Zamboanga Hermo-sa Fest ival is one event in Zamboan-ga that is being at-tended not only by the cathol ic devo-tees here but a lso v is i tors from neigh-bor ing c i t ies and

regions and even other countr ies v is i t Zamboanga to wit-ness and be part of the celebrat ion. Although the ac-tual feast day is on October 12, act iv i-t ies however wi l l be a month long af fa ir start ing f i rst day of October. This year ’s f i-esta celebrat ion is anchored on the theme: “Vamos a Zamboanga,” stress-ing on the c i ty ’s goal to promote Zam-boanga as a tour-i s t and investment dest inat ion in th is part of the country.(JPA/PIA 9-Zambo City)

by Jocelyn P. Alvarez


24 Lanao Sur candidates to the RLA of ARMM present their platforms in today’s public forumby Apipa P. Bagumbaran

Shortlisted from 64 aspirants, only three (3) candidates, from each of the districts will serve the remaining 21 months of office of the members of the RLA. Given five (5) min-utes, each, the can-didates to introduced themselves and dis-cussed their proposed platforms, after which they were asked to elab-orate on some issues and concerns by the panelist whose name they hand-picked from a box. The candidates, their backgrounds and the sectors they rep-resent are as follows: Lanao del Sur-1st District

– Atty. Rasol Mitmug, Jr., Youth, Ziaur-Rahman Adiong, incumbent, Atty. Majul Gandamra, Politi-cal, Gonarano Mapandi, Academe, Atty. Aquil Is-mael, and Atty. Aliman Mangandog. Samira Gutoc, Women, Yasir Pang-adapun Naga, LP, Jaylani Alonto, Professional, Jo-hari Macarampat and Dr. Manimah D. Pandi and Norkhalila Mambuay-Campong, Youth, who was in Sweden and who presented her platform by phone patch. Lanao del Sur- 2nd District – Yasser Balindong, incumbent RLA member, Mcmillan

Lucman, Government Sector, Atty. Madraop Pamaloy, CSO, Atty. Zahrain Bantao, Benja-min Marohombsar, Pro-fessional and Alexander Menor, incumbent RLA member. Sittie Norhanie Lao, Youth, Jamael Balt, Peace Nominee, Allan Pagrangan, People’s Or-ganization, Ibra Maca-panton, Media, Saad-dudin Alauya, Academe and Tulawidan Dimapo-ro, Political. Composing the panelists and the sectors they represent were the following: Mohammad Faisal D. Pangadapun, Youth, Abulkhair M. Ali-

MARAWI CITY, Lanao del Sur, Sept. 13 (PIA) – At least 24 candidates for assemblymen from Lanao del Sur’s two (2) congressional districts to the Regional Legislative Assembly (RLA) in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) took turns to talk about their platforms in today’s public forum organized by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

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basa, Non-government Organization, Atty. Al-izedney M. Ditucalan, Professional, and Ray-salam B. Mangondato,

Local Government Unit. Dr. Dipsy M. Mar-uhom, Women, Dr. Ali-nader D. Minalang, Gov-ernment, Dr. Guimba B.

Poingan, Public Insti-tution, Samanuding D. Sansarona, Media, and Rashid V. Pandi, Educa-tion. (PIA-10)

4ID soldiers garner medals in sports competitionby Major Eugenio Julio C Osias IVCAMP EVANGELISTA, Cagayan de Oro City, Sept. 13 (PIA) – Maj. Gen. Victor A Felix, Commander of the 4th Infantry “Diamond” Division, Phil-ippine Army (4ID, PA), has commended five (5) of his soldiers for bag-ging the major prizes in the long distance foot race/fun run initiated by the Civil Service Commission (CSC), region 10.

The said soldiers bagged the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 10th prizes in the event, which was held in observance of the 111th Philippine Civil Service Anniversary, last Sept. 9. To celebrate the oc-casion, CSC-10 has lined up a series of activities participated by all in-ter-agency employees in the region envisioned to show-case their skills through friendly games and fun-run competition. Meanwhile, the 4ID run-ners, who show-cased their skills and showed sportsmanship and cama-raderie in the said athletic activity and their respec-tive units were the follow-ing:

PFC Ernie Z. Cab-ingue, 26IB, 1st Plac-er, PFC Danilo L. Orallo, 4th Mechanized Infantry Company, 2nd Placer, SGT Jerry N. Gamilla, 8IB, 3rd Placer, SSg Donato A. Ba-rua, 4PDS, 4th Placer, Cpl Jester T. Camargo, 23IB, 5th Placer and SSg Jo-ennel L. Traces, 23rd IB, 10th Placer. The event started from Bulua Gymnasium passing along Marcos Bridge, and ended-up at the Don Gregorio Pelaez Sports Center. It was also partici-pated in by all government agency employees and was among the month-long series of activities for the celebration. “I commend these

soldier-athletes who ded-icated themselves in im-proving their skills and by showing commitment and discipline,” Felix said. He, likewise, gave motivation to personnel by providing them ad-equate support to enable them to maintain their excellent performance in sports. The participation of the “Diamond” troop-ers was an expression of commitment and support to the commu-nity, as soldiers were not only trained to hone their combat prowess, but they were also physically and mental-ly trained in any sports compet i t ion.(4CMP/PIA-10)

24 Lanao Sur...from page 17


Fire razes 91 houses, affects 192 households in Iligan by Lorry V. Gabule

Around 12:10 a.m. of Sept. 11, fire furiously razed 91 houses, inflict-ing total damage, that left 192 families with 455 de-pendents of Puroks Abes-tilla and Bagong Lipunan, Barangay Mahayahay, here, homeless. Likewise, there were 48 identified as renters, boarders, and sharers, whose belongings were partially damaged.The fire started at the res-idence of Guro Alam Tu-cal of Purok Bagong Lipu-nan. It was reported that upon the arrival of the city fire truck, three (3) resi-dential buildings made up of mixed materials were already engulfed by fire. Firefighters have controlled the fire after one hour and 30 minutes (1:30min.) of firefight-ing operations and de-clared fire out at around 3:00am, said City Fire Marshal Wilfredo A. Da-vid, Chief, Bureau of Fire Protection, (BFP).

Sixteen (16) fire trucks from the city and neighboring towns re-sponded to fully clear the area out of danger while the estimated damage to property amounted to Php20 million. Several victims are now at the evacuation center in the barangay gymnasium, while others took refuge at the houses of their relatives. David said a thor-ough investigation on the cause of fire is being con-ducted, which is still on-going as of press time. “We based our list-ings from the actual in-terview using the intake form of the families af-fected, which was done by the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) workers as-signed in the area,” ex-plained Josefina Mabanta, CSWD Supervisor, District 3. The city government provided rice, sardines,

noodles, kitchen wares, beddings and used cloth-ing as immediate relief assistance to the fire vic-tims, which are directly distributed by pack to the victims at the evacuation center. Other groups who donated food packs were the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), Abante Mindan-ao (ABAMIN) Party List, city councilors, individu-als and religious groups, clubs, who brought their donations directly to the evacuation center. Meanwhile Evelyn Madrio, Team Leader of the Department of So-cial Welfare and Devel-opment (DSWD), region 10, Cagayan de Oro City, has requested for aug-mentation of relief assis-tance from the region to be distributed to the fire victims, and cash assis-tance to the totally/par-tially damaged houses/properties of the victims. (PIA-10)

ILIGAN CITY, Lanao del Norte, Sept. 13 (PIA) — For victims of the con-flagration, it was kind of a night mare when they woke up. Nothing was left but ashes of their properties, after they were totally burned.


Cebuano News: SP sa siyudad naghangyo nga ipatu-man ang slope protection system sa mga road devel-opment and expansion projects by Melvin T. Anggot

ILIGAN CITY, Lanao del Norte, Sept. 13 (PIA) -- Naghangyo karon ang konseho sa siyudad kang Congressman Vicente Belmonte, Jr. nga man-do-an ang lokal nga sanga sa Department of Public Works and High-ways nga butangan og slope protection system ang tanang road devel-opment and expansion project sa bukirang bahin sa atong dapit.

Tuyo niini ang pagli-kay sa damyos sa proprie-dad ug kinabuhi nga posi-bleng mahitabo tungod sa pagdahili sa yuta panahon sa mga pag-ulan ulan. Mipahayag si Ka-gawad Joe Zalsos sa Sangguniang Panglung-

sod, ang nangamahan sa resolusyon alang sa maong lakang, nga git-inguha usab sa kagam-hanang lokal ang pagli-kay nga mahitabo dinhi sa Iligan ang nahitabo didto sa Valencia niining milabay’ng mga bulan.

Partikular nga buot mahatagan og pagtagad sa mga magbabalaod ang slope protection system alang sa gipangkabkab ug gipalapdang mga dalan sa Circumferential Road 3 ug Iligan-Bukidnon Road. (CIO/PIA-10)

Cebuano News: Mayor Cruz nadasig sa maayong per-formance sa Iligan diha sa DILG LPGMS report by Melvin T. AnggotILIGAN CITY, Lanao del Norte, Sept. 13 (PIA) -- Nakapadasig kang May-or Lawrence Lluch Cruz ang resulta sa 2010 Local Government Perfor-mance Management System System (LPGMS) report sa Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) nga naglakip sa Iligan sa top 8 diha sa mga best performing highly urbanized and independent compo-nent cities sa nasud. Alang kang May-or Cruz, nagtimaan ang maong kalambo-an nga aduna gayu’y nakab-ot ang kagamhanang lokal sa Iligan diha sa paning-kamot nga mamintinar ang taas nga standard sa paghatod sa serbisyo publiko.

Subling gipahayag sa pamuno-dakbayan nga dili lamang iya ang maong accomplishment kundili tungod usab sa pag-abag sa ubang mga opisyal sa siyudad, mga department heads ug tanang mga kawani sa lokal nga kagamhanan.

Nanghinaut si May-or Cruz nga magsilbing dugang inspirasyon ang maong kalampusan nga ipadayon o kaha labwan pa ang maayong per-formance sa pagsilbi sa katawhan ug dugang pag-palambo sa dakbayan. (CIO/PIA-10)


DOLE sees zero strikes for 2011by Mai Gevera-MacapagatDAVAO CITY Sept. 13 (PIA) - The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is optimistic to sustain this zero strike situation until yearend. DOLE XI regional di-rector Atty. Joffrey Suyao announced in yesterday’s Kapihan sa Dabaw at SM City Davao that his office has not yet received any petition from the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP). “The National Concil-iation and Mediation Board (NCMB) is doing its best to settle mediations as soon as possible.” Suyao said. He added that in a meeting scheduled next week, the board will de-termine the time to meet and discuss the possibility

of a wage hike. This early, the DOLE has also inspected 1,200 establishments all over the region. Three hundred of the said number was found to have violated the existing wage order. The board is again set to meet in the coming days to again monitor and consolidate which of the violators have complied with the wage order. Suyao explained that an establishment is given seven days to correct its violation after a complaint was filed. If there was no

compliance made given the time, then the DOLE may call for a summary investigation. “ After that 7 days, the office given the violator another 30 days to com-ply. If the establishment failed to do so, that’s the time we issue a compli-ance order.” he stressed. The purpose of this process is to strengthen conciliation and mediation such that simple labor vio-lations won’t result to legal processes like strikes and lock-outs. (PIA 11/Mai Gevera-Macapagat)

NEDA-XI clarifies reports on Austrian bridgesby Mai Gevera-MacapagatDAVAO CITY Sept. 13 (PIA) - National Economic Development Authority regional director who also sits as Chairperson in the Regional Project Monitoring Committee of the Regional Development Council XI Lourdes Lim clarified that the six Austrian-assisted bridge projects in Davao del Sur have all been completed contrary to reports. 22


Reappointed USEP prexy charts school’s growthDAVAO CITY Sept. 13 (PIA) - Improved academic standings and new school facilities are among the things that recently reappointed University of Southeastern Philippines president Perfecto Alibin will be focusing for the next four years of his term.

In yesterday’s Kapihan sa Dabaw at SM City Davao, Lim shared to the Davao media the monitoring report of the RDC on those bridge projects. “ RPMC conducts a quarterly monitoring on these projects and we immediately convey the report to the concerned agencies.” said Lim after receiving reports that some bridge projects in Davao del Sur haven’t been completed when completion date is

supposed to be in 2009. Kinangan Bridge in Malita was completed in 2009, the Tubalan Bridge, Meybio Bridge, and the Pangian II Bridge were 100 percent complete in 2010. The two remaining bridges, Culaman and Marabatuan, had just been completed early this year. Lim said their monitoring found out that reasons for the delay are inaccessibility of the project sites as well as the difficulty in transporting the materials.

The RPMC submitted minor corrections to the DPWH and these were answered and complied immediately after, said Lim. Also during the press forum, the RPMC showed photos of the said bridge projects. A total of P164 million was donated by the Austrian Government for these particular infrastructure projects in the first district of Davao del Sur. (PIA 11/Mai Gevera-Macapagat)

“We are working on putting our programs for ac-creditation and have identi-fied programs as centers of excellence.” Alibin said dur-ing an interview at his office at the sprawling USEP cam-pus in Barrio Obrero, Davao City. “Accreditation is a tool

of quality assurance.” Alibin said. His immediate thrust is making sure that the university’s numerous pro-grams are leveling up. For example, a level 1 course must improve unto the next level, until it reaches level 3 which is the highest. Alibin has identified

the school’s Engineering and Technology programs as the centers of excel-lence. The technology college is being groomed as a TESDA (Technical Education and Skills De-velopment Authority) ac-credited assessment cen-ter for tech-voc courses.

NEDA-XI clarifies...from page 21

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Under Alibin who was first appointed univer-sity president in Septem-ber 2007, USEP has con-sistently ranked number one among top perform-ing SUCs (state universities and colleges) in the country. The assessments are based on the number of programs awarded accreditation sta-tus at different levels by the Accrediting Agency of Char-tered Colleges and Universi-ties in the Philippines (AAC-CUP). In a ranking done by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) the world’s leading network for universities and business school, USEP ranks among the top 200 Asian universi-ties and among the top 10 Philippine universities Also in Alibin’s tenure, new school facilities and in-frastructure are also being developed, foremost is the 8,000-seater USEP Gymna-sium which is nearing com-pletion. The P120-million proj-ect, touted as the biggest gymnasium in Davao City will soon be turned-over to the University, another

P10-million pledge from the Davao City first district Rep-resentative Karlo Nograles is expected to completely finish the facility, this in-cludes the putting up of a modern basketball court comparable to the ones be-ing used by professional leagues like the Philippine Basketball Association. Another facility is the Andaya Building which houses the College of Governance, Business and Economics. Another P10-million has been al-located to further expand the building into three floors. The planned Labo-ratory building which will house the chemistry, bi-ology and physics labora-tories has been approved by the university board with an initial P10-million allocation. Alibin is also eyeing the construction of a library building but is looking at ad-vances in library technology particularly in virtual digital libraries. At present USEP is investing in its electronic li-brary through subscriptions

of e-books and e-journals and personal computer (PC) units. “We are the only library hooked up with the Philippine e-library and the Philippine Institute of Digi-tal Studies.” Alibin added. To be a successful university president you must be a good mix of an academic, executive and corporate manager. Be-cause a university doesn’t just involve academics, to level up as an institution you must also be a corpo-rate manager Alibin said. From 2006-2009 USEP recorded a 75% in-crease of special projects income attributed to ef-fective monitoring, evalu-ation and management of income-generating spe-cial projects. Under Ali-bin’s term the school was able to earn profit from commercial stalls and ag-riculture ventures in its provincial campuses. Ali-bin said that he will still pursue that initiative, un-der proposal is a private-public partnership (PPP) for the USEP gymnasium. (PIA 11/RG Alama)

Reappointed USEP...from page 22


Comval launches Unified Telecom System for Disaster Preparedness and SafetyCOMVAL Province, Sept.13 - The Province of Compostela Valley, through the Provincial Disaster Risk Management Council (PDRRMC) has embarked on a Wireless Broadband Telecommunication System project called the “Unified Tele-communication System for Disaster Preparedness and Public Safety- Phase I.” Launched on Sep-tember 8 at the capitol, the project maximizes the use and availability of different ICT technol-ogies to different disas-ter management teams in the province. It con-verges Information and Communication Tech-nologies such as the Telephone, Radio, Inter-coms, Fax, IP Surveil-lance, Cellular Phone, Internet, Intranet, and GPS surveillance. According to PDRRMC Action Offi-cer Raul Villocino, the Phase I of the project involves the installation of ICT facilities in 8 LGUs (Maragusan, Laak, Pantukan, Mabini, Maco, New Bataan, Compos-tela, and Monkayo), 4 Provincial Hospitals, and 5 emergency response vehicles. The command center is located in the

Provincial Capitol. The project estab-lishes a telephone and data communication sys-tem among the RHUs, Hospitals and the Pro-vincial Capitol. With this system, the MDRRMCs, RHUs and Hospitals can now contact each other or the Provincial Capitol Offices via VOIP phone at no cost. They can also send data or fax mes-sages to other RHUs, CVP Hospitals or at the capitol without any long distance charges. And with the Internet ser-vices available in the MDRRMCs, RHUs and Hospitals, they can now monitor disaster advi-sories and send reports right then and there in their computers as well as instant messages. Disaster response teams equipped with ra-dios which can connect

with the existing radio network of the province can now interconnect with a telephone in the network and vice versa. The command cen-ter situated at the capi-tol is equipped with Ra-dio, Intercoms, Fax, IP Surveillance, Cellular Phone, Internet, Intra-net, and Vehicle Track-ing services. It manages all services forwarded in the LGUs and Hospitals. Another compo-nent of the project is its capability of establish-ing a mobile command center. The mobile com-mand center has similar functionalities with the fixed command center in the Provincial Capitol. However, it can be acti-vated in any area in the province within reach by the existing radio com-munication network. It capacitates disaster

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response teams in the field with data and com-munication tools with the aim of strengthening the coordination among various emergency re-sponse teams. The project is in its initial roll out phase.

The succeeding phases shall extend the instal-lation to other agencies. According to Gov. Uy, though it has been initi-ated by the PDRRMC as part of its disaster miti-gation measure but its usefulness extends to

other services and ac-tivities of the LGUs. The project implementation serves to improve the quality and delivery of public services in Com-postela Valley province. (JOYZEL ODI/ITCDD/IDS COMVAL)

TAGUM CITY to host National IP conclave in October 2011TAGUM CITY, Sept. 13 -The National Commission for Culture and the Arts’ (NCCA) annual celebration of National Indig-enous Peoples’ Month (Buwan ng Katutubong Pilipino” moves to Davao Region in Mindanao with Tagum City as its main venue. This October, Dayaw: Indigenous Peoples Festi-val 2011, under the aus-pices of the NCCA’s Sub-commission on Cultural Communities and Tradi-tional Arts and Mindanawon Foundation, in partnership with local governments, government agencies and the private sector, focuses the spotlight on the coun-try’s indigenous peoples, celebrating their arts and ways of life, discussing im-portant issues and making more people aware of the richness and importance of indigenous cultures. The leaders and rep-

resentatives of more than 100 indigenous peoples of the Philippines will con-verge together in City of Tagum, Davao del Norte on October 6-10, 2011 to showcase their rituals, performing arts, cuisines, games, crafts and others. Additionally, they will be joined by delegates from Southeast Asian countries in simultaneous exchange and interactive activities such as performances, ex-hibitions, forums, lecture-demonstrations, work-shops on traditional crafts and cuisines and indige-nous games.

This year, Dayaw aims to celebrate the cul-tures of the Filipino people as well as those of the vis-iting foreign delegates by “understanding the com-monalities of the various indigenous peoples.” It also aims to “strengthen/broaden the awareness, appreciation and pride of all Filipinos for our own traditional culture in the context of cross-cultural interactions in a global so-ciety. With the theme “Pa-ghabi ng Ating Pagkakatu-lad Tungo sa Kapayapaan” (Interweaving Our Com-

Comval launches..from page 24

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monalities Towards Peace), the festival features many components such as Tan-ghalang Makulay (a ritual and performing arts fes-tival), Salu-salong Sarap (a food festival), Mga Habi ng Panaginip (an arts and crafts exhibit, focusing on basketry, textile and mat weaving), Sama-sama sa Tuwa(games/sports), and Usapang Dangal at Likhang Paghayag (forum and creative workshop on peace and unity). The celebration is in consonance with Presiden-tial Proclamation 1906, declaring October as Na-tional Indigenous Peoples’ Month. The NCCA has been holding major festivals for several years now in Lu-zon, Visayas and Mindan-ao. In 2007, Kalimudan: Panaghi-usa sa Mindanao (Mindanao Indigenous Peoples’ Gathering) held in Davao City in Novem-ber, featured Mindanao’s ethnic groups. The following year, Timpuyog: Indigenous Peoples’ Month Celebration in Luzon was held in San-tiago City, Isabela, focus-

ing on Luzon ethnic groups and featuring performanc-es, arts and crafts work-shops, cultural awareness lectures, forums, tours, and a theme-park exhibi-tion featuring the tradi-tional houses, cultural re-sources, practices/rituals, chants, music, songs and dances, stories, traditional arts and crafts, indigenous games. In 2009, the Indig-enous Peoples’ Festival was held in the Visayas, particularly in Roxas City, Capiz, called Dungog, with similar activities and aims. Last year, Dayaw 2010 was held in Metro Manila. This festival aims provide venue for indig-enous peoples to cele-brate the richness of their cultures; allow cultural exchanges that will fos-ter deeper cultural un-derstanding to sustain a culture of peace; provide opportunity to discuss IP rights; give students and other people a chance to deepen their awareness and appreciation of indig-enous cultures; recognize the expertise and contri-

butions of indigenous com-munities; and advocate for the preservation as well as integration of traditional culture into the national cultural mainstream. Dayaw 2011 is held in cooperation with the City Government of Tagum, City Tourism Council of Tagum and other Local Government Units, Nation-al Commission on Indige-nous Peoples, Department of Education, Department of Tourism, Department of Interior and Local Govern-ment, Department of For-eign Affairs, Commission on Higher Education, Phil-ippine Information Agen-cy, Department of Trade and Industry, National Commission for Muslim Filipino, SM City Davao, Abreeza Ayala, as well as non-governmental, socio-civic and peoples’ organi-zations. The NCCA is led by its chairman, Prof. Felipe de Leon, Jr., and Malou Ja-cob as executive director, with Commissioner Joy-cie Dorado-Alegre as SC-CTA head. (CIO-Tagum/PIA)

TAGUM CITY to host..from page 25


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Provincial board authorizes guv to loan P30 M for school buildingsby Dani Doguiles

KORONADAL CITY, Sept. 13 (PIA) - South Cotabato’s provin-cial board yesterdayapproved a resolution authorizing Gov. Arthur Y. Pingoy Jr. to enter into a loan contract withthe Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) for the construc-tion of classrooms. But instead of the original request for P40 million, the provincial board authorizes Gov. Pingoy to borrow only P30 million in behalf of the provincial school board. According to data from the Department of Education, South Co-tabato still needs 93 classrooms for elemen-tary and 37 classrooms for secondary level based on a ratio of 41.48 students to one classroom. Vice Governor Elmo Tolosa, in a press brief-

ing this morning said that they reduced the authorized loan to al-low the provincial board to observe the initial implementation of the project. “If we observe positive results in the implementation, we will authorize the governor for an additional P10 million loan,” he said. He added: “With the amount we will be able to build more or less 50 classrooms,” The provincial gov-ernment is also consid-ering two schemes to

augment the number of classrooms that will be constructed from the said amount. Tolosa said they are considering the of-fer of local construction firm Chiu Kim for a three-plus-two scheme wherein for every three classrooms contracted, the firm will construct two additional class-rooms for free. In an earlier in-terview, board member Jose Madanguit said, he and other members of the board have al-ready inspected Chiu


Kim’s work and have observed that the additional classrooms that the firm build pass standards. Both Tolosa and Mandanguit, however, clarified that the project will still go through the usual bid-ding process and that the construc-tion firm’s offer will only be realized if it wins the bid. Tolosa added that they will also enter into an agreement with the Department of Education for a counterpart scheme where DepEd

builds a classroom for every class-room that the LGU constructs. He said if both schemes will be pursued South Cotabato is expected to gain at least seven additional classrooms for every three classrooms originally con-tracted. The loan with DBP is payable for ten years at 7.5 percent in-terest per annum. Payment will be charged to the special educa-tion fund. (PIA 12)

T’boli women disclose benefits from 4Ps T’BOLI, South Cotabato, September 13 (PIA) – In their testi-monies during the convergence caravan held on September 10 at the municipal gymnasium of Tboli, South Cotabato, four women-beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) were one in saying that the cash they received have tremendously helped in augmenting their families ‘incomes Juvelyn Lumbay of Barangay Sinolon; Hemia Mas of Barangay Desawo ; Susan Espe-rila of Barangay Pobla-cion; and Nona Pahiran of Barangay Edwards, all of Tboli, South Cotabato said the amount they receive enable them to purchase school sup-

plies and materials for their children’s projects and basic needs like food. Part of the fund assistance, according to them, was used as fare in visiting health centers with their children for check-ups. The convergence caravan organized by

the Department of So-cial Welfare and Devel-opment (DSWD), region 12, headed by Direc-tor Zorahayda Taha was supported by other gov-ernment agencies to in-clude the Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Agricul-ture, Department of Pub-

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Provincial board...from page 27


lic Works and Highways, Department of Environ-ment and Natural Re-sources, Department of Trade and Industry, De-partment of Health, De-partment of Education, National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, Technical Education and Skills Development Au-thority, PhilHealth and the Philippine Informa-tion Agency. Most of the agen-cies distributed infor-mation materials to the people and others like DTI and DA displayed products from their cli-ents.

In answering the criticism on mendi-cancy, DSWD assis-tant secretary Camilo Gudmalin explained, “ a minor detail people tend to ignore is that recipients generally re-ceive help for no more than five (5) years.” “So the notion of a temporary bridge is precisely to discour-age parasitism and encourage long term behavioural change. After all, at P1,400 a month per family, CCTs can only supple-ment the household income of beneficia-

ries by increasing their purchasing pow-er for food and other necessities,”Gudmalin further said. “Moreover, close monitoring of the pro-gram has indicated that compliance rates have been particu-larly high: children’s attendance in school was a decent 88%, while enrolment rates for children from the ages 6-14 was as high as 96%,” the DSWD official added. (OT-SUDARIA/PIA 12)

Tagalog News: Rep. Avance-Fuentes ipaglalaban ang programang mag-aangat ng kabuhayan ng mahihirapKORONADAL CITY, Seytembre 13 (PIA) – Nangako si South Cotabato 2nd District Representative Daisy Avance-Fuentes na patuloy niyang ipaglalaban ang mga programang mag-aangat sa kabuhayan ng mga mahihirap na pamilya sa lala-wigan.

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Ito ang inihayag ni Rep.Fuentes sa harap ng mga lumahok sa

Convergence Caravan ng Department of Social Welfare and Develop-

ment Region 12 (DSWD 12) sa T’boli, South Co-tabato noong Sabado.

T’boli women disclose...from page 28


Ayon sa kongresis-ta, hangad niyang ma-kaahon ang mga pami-lya mula sa kahirapan, lalung lalo na ang mga pamilya dito sa lalawigan ng South Cotabato. Aniya, hangad din niya na pagkatapos ng mga programa, magig-ing produktibong mama-mayan na ang mga ito at hindi na kailangang umasa pa sa ayuda ng pamahalaan. Isinagawa ng tang-gapan ng DSWD 12 ang convergence cara-van upang ipaliwanag sa mga mamamayan at tuloy manawagan ng suporta at pakikiisa sa mga programang Pan-tawid Pamilyang Pilipi-no, Kapit- Bisig Laban sa

Kahirapan-Comprehen-sive and Integrated De-livery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS), at Self Employment Assistance-Kabuhayan (SEA-K). Sa naturang cara-van hinikayat ni DSWD 12 Regional Director Zo-rahayda Taha ang mga residente ng T’boli na manatiling mapagban-tay sa programa lalung lalo na sa implementa-syon nito. Hiniling din niya sa mga magulang na siguraduhin na ang mga bata ay regular na pumapasok sa paaralan at siguraduhong sila ay palagiang kumukonsul-ta o bumibisita sa ka-nilang barangay health unit. Layon din ng con-

vergence caravan ang mapakinggan ang bo-ses ng mga benepi-syaryo ng mga progra-mang pangkabuhayan ng pamahalaan. Ayon sa kay Hemia Mas, benepisyaryo ng 4Ps sa Barangay Desa-wo, malaki ang naging tulong ng programa sa kanilang pamilya. Aniya, nakakapasok na ang kanyang mga anak sa paaralan na hindi nagugutom at nabibilhan na rin um-ano niya ng tsinelas na magagamit na sap-in sa paa ng kanyang mga anak sa pagla-lakad papuntang esku-wela. (DEDoguiles/PIA 12)

Tagalog News: Rep. Avance-Fuentes...from page 29

Tagalog News: Mga ina sa T’boli pina-tunanayang nakatutulong ang 4PS na mapabuti ang kanilang kalagayan KORONADAL CITY, Setyembre 13 (PIA) – Apat na ina ng tahanan ang nagpatunay na nakatutulong ang natatang-gap na ayuda ng pamahalaan sa pamamagitan ng Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

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Sa convergence caravan na isinagawa sa bayan ng T’boli noong Sabado, pare-hong pinasalamatan nina Juvelyn Lumbay ng Barangay Sinolon, Hemia Mas ng Baran-gay Desawo, Susan Esperila ng Barangay Poblacion, at Nona Pa-hiran ang DSWD sa pagpapatupad ng 4Ps na nagdulot sa kanila ng ginhawa sa bu-hay. Anila, dahil sa ka-nilang natatanggap na pera buwan-buwan, nakabibili na sila ng mga kagamitan ng ka-nilang mga anak para patuloy na makapapa-sok sa paaralan. Na-katutulong din umano ito na mapunan ang kakulangan sa pagkain ng kani-kanilang pami-lya. Ang nalalabing halaga ay nagagamit pa nila na pamasahe papunta sa mga health

center dala ang kanil-ang mga anak para bumisita o magpakon-sulta. Ang apat na ina ay kasama sa mga lumahok sa conver-gence caravan sa T’boli na pinangunah-an ng Department of Social Welfare and De-velopment Region 12 (DSWD 12). Katuwang ng DSWD ang iba pang tanggapan ng pama-halaan tulad ng De-partment of Labor and Employment, Depart-ment of Agriculture, Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Envi-ronment and Natural Resources, Depart-ment of Trade and In-dustry, Department of Health, Department of Education, National Commission on Indig-enous Peoples, Techni-cal Education and Skills Development Author-

ity, at Philippine In-formation Agency na nagbigay rin ng kani-kanilang serbisyo sa mga residente ng na-turang bayan. Samantala nili-wanag ni DSWD as-sistant secretary Ca-millo Gudmalin na ang conditional cash trans-fer (CCT) sa 4Ps ay pansamantala o pan-tawid lamang kung kaya’t hindi magrere-sulta sa katamaran at parasitismo sa mga benepisyaryo. Aniya, ayon sa kanilang isinagawang monitoring, dahil sa programa nasa 88 por-siyento na ngayon ang antas ng pagpasok sa paaralan ng mga anak ng mga benepisyaryo, samantalang nasa 96 porsiyento naman ang enrolment rate ng mga batang nasa 6 na ta-ong gulang hanggang 12 taong gulang. (DE-Doguiles/PIA 12)

Tagalog News: Rep. Mga ina sa T’boli...from page 30



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One Mindanao - September 13, 2011