Labor, managementtackle wage hike

Vol. XI No. 534 • Dumaguete City, Philippines • July 18 - July 24, 2010 • P10.00

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NegOr has highest malnutrition rate in CV

QUOTABLES

Dumaguete City Vice Mayor Alan GelCordova, lamenting on what he sees as adeclining work ethic among the youth.

Foundation University President Mira Sinco,challenging students to strive for excellence.

“We have togive up

mediocrity.There

should beno room for

‘pwedena’”.

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E D I T O R I A L / A D V E R T I S I N G T E L S . ( 3 5 ) 2 2 5 - 0 9 9 2 ; 4 2 2 - 5 1 6 1 E M A I L : un i to w n Pu b l i s h i n g @ g m a i l . c o m

The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board is expected to issue a new Wage Order in August.

Local power is cheaper: EDCWhy import power when

local power is cheaper?This will be the Energy

Development Corporation (EDC)’s pitch to keep theelectric cooperatives in Negrosisland as their customers oncetheir contracts with theNational Power Corporationexpire in December.

Under the present powersetup, the EDC supplies steamto the National PowerCorporation, which will beused to run NPC’s powerturbines. The NPC sells thepower it produces to the electriccooperatives in Negros Islandand beyond.

With the expiration of theircontracts with Napocor, theelectric cooperatives will be freeto buy power from IndependentPower Producers (IPPS), suchas the Kepco coal-fired plant inNaga, Cebu.

EDC believes that they havean edge over IPPs because of

Regional Tripartite Wages & ProductivityBoard regional chairperson Elias Cayanong,on the wage increase petition.

Cong. George Arnaiz, Gov. Agustin Perdices and Dumaguete City Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria, alongwith officers of the Negros Oriental Chamber of Commerce & Industry and the Filipino-ChineseChamber of Commerce of Dumaguete welcome the contingent from the All-China Youth Federationled by Wan Xuejun (1st row, 4th from left) and National Youth Commission Chair ChristopherLawrence Arnuco (1st row, 3rd from right)for their two-day visit to Negros Oriental, which aimed toexplore possible partnerships and exchange visits between China and the Philippines.

“The bestsolution is

something thatlabor and

managementwill not like.”

“I was taughtnot to accept

charity;wewere taught to

work formoney.”

The Regional TripartiteWages and Productivity Boardis expected to issue a newWage Order in August.

This will be an offshoot ofthe consultations conducted bythe RTWPB ac ross thecountry. The consultations aredone by region. In the Visayas,the RTWPB is headed byRegional Chairman El iasCayanong.

In the D umagueteconsultation last Wednesdayat the Bethel Guest House, bothlabor and management werelocked in disagreement overthe wage hike issue.

Labor is demanding anacross-the-board increase ofup to P128 per day whilemanagement is taking thestand for a status quo.

The Negros OrientalBus iness Dev elopmentFoundation and the NegrosOrienta l Chamber ofCommerc e & Industryrepresented by NOBDFChairman Greg Uymatiao Jr.and Ed Du, respectively,  saidmany of the Dumaguete andNegros Oriental businessmenare still reeling from the effectsof the global financial crisis.

On the other hand, the

their proximity to theircustomers.

EDC chief operating officerRichard Tantoco said their rateswill be cheaper than those ofother power companiesbecause there will be no systemsloss of 6 percent, it is valueadded tax-free, and it is clean.

Systems loss is the lossincurred in the transmission ofelectricity.  The farther thepower is transmitted from thesource, the greater the losses.IPPs from Cebu, for instance,incur a six percent loss just forsending power to NegrosIsland via submarine cable.

Tantoco also said thatunder the renewable energylaw, power bought from a greensource like EDC, is VAT-free.

He said it makes sense forthe EDC to first sell power toelectric coops in the islandbefore selling it to the rest oftheir 16 consumers all over theVisayas region.

He also said he believes it willbe able to supply most, if not all,the un-served needs of theelectric coops.

All the five electric coops inthe island have bondedthemselves into the NegrosPower Supply AggregationGroup during a meeting held inBacolod City earlier this month,NORECO 2 finance officerDionefred Macahig said.

He said the group isnegotiating as one with GreenCorporation and hoping for a“one-island-one-rate” agreementincludig the new terms andconditions for the sale ofelectricity.

NPSAG is composed of fiveelectric coops: CENECO ofBacolod, NOCECO ofKabankalan, VRESCO ofVictorias, NORECO 1 in Bindoyand NORECO 2 in Dumaguete.

NPSAG is headed byEdward Gasambelo ofCENECO. (PNA/JG)TO PAGE 2

Teves vows support forBSP refo drive

METROPOSTJULY 18 - JULY 24, 2010

AROUND the UNIVERSITY TOWN2

JOHN STEVENSON

MINORITYREPORTjohn.stevenson@foundationU.com

It’s in the new mall inDumaguete, the first realfull-sized mall in the

City, built on a field of grasswhere, only a few years ago,cows were grazing.

From the looks of thesethree boys wanderingaround in it, the mall mightas well have dropped therefrom outer space, it’s so aliento anything in their previousexperience. They walkthrough enormous emptyspaces, gigantic rooms, withendless brickwork andpolished tile beneath theirfeet, all enclosed withinhuge bright cement walls 10times their height, athousand times their weight.

All the surfaces theyencounter are hard and

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THE STARTINGBLOKE

DR. APARICIO ‘PERRY’ H. MEQUI

docmequi@yahoo.com

“curfew” or cut-off time forrunners. We always wait forthe last and slowest runner tocross the finish line).

“3. The more critical factor isthat the hydration managementis not in the control of the runner.He has to rely on wateravailability at the water stationsprovided and planned by theorganizer along the route. In this34th Milo Marathon, severalrunners including Remusbrother, Roy and Remus runningbuddy asserted that practicallythere was no water to drink inthe last two to three kilometersbefore the finish line, a fatal failurefor Remus by the organizer whenthey changed the route resultingin over-traffic near the finish line.There were a record of 28,000runners on that day andobviously, the organizers failed to

anticipate the complexity ofhydration .Milo ’s last yearmarathon participant was wellbelow 10,000 runners.

(Adequate drinking wateralong the route is the mostdifficult requirement to meetin marathon organizing. Isuggest that Joe Guirit willenlist the assistance of the CityFire Department to ferrydrinking water along theroute and to stand by in casewater stations run dry).

“4. The correct life-savingresponse for heatstroke dependson few knowledgeable people whomay happen to be around theperson. To mitigate this, theorganizer deploys ambulanceswith water and ice for coolingheatstroke victims and isexpected to respond withinminutes. In addition, marshalsare provided along the route toassess runner situationscontinuously. Obviously, theorganizer failed again on thisaspect because Remus washelped by policemen and hisbuddy instead. By this time,

Remus is probably alreadybrain damaged as evident by hisseizure at the hospital. No Milopeople knew of Remus case onthat day until Roy, his brother,sent an email informing theorganizer of the incident in thenext morning.

(In the last staging of theBuglasan run from Sibulan tothe Capitol, I was one of thevolunteers at the finish line.The race started late, and onegirl crossed the finish lineshowing symptoms of heatstroke. I guided the girlunder the shade of a tree,made her lie down on theground, and ordered thatpails and pails of water bepoured all over her, soakingher entire body. Sherecovered after some 20

minutes of this treatment. Isuggest that ice be providedat the finish line, and evenseveral electric fans/blowersto cool off runners after therun).

“5. The sun factor adds to thedanger in marathon. Runningunder the heat of the sun intropical country like ours cannotbe underestimated. To minimizethe effect of the sun’s heat,Marathon run is planned tofinish in the early morningavoiding the heat at later time.Organizers usually take this intoconsideration. Milo organizedthe 21K to start at 5:30 am, adeparture of common practice ofother marathons that start at5:00 am. Remus collapsed atabout 7:57 am. Roy, who is abetter runner than his brotherRemus, complained that it was

unusually hot thatmorning even if hewas able to finish itearlier in two hours45 minutes.”

( M a r a t h o nrunning, and any

long distance sport events forthat matter, should start earlyin the morning — and ontime. I understand that theannual Sandurot bicycle racestarts quite late in the day.Fortunately, in our duathlonrace last July 11, except for afew bikers, most of themreported on time for the 5:30am start of the race).

“Clearly, marathon is anextreme and dangerous sporteven to the young, healthy, andtrained runners. This is not the“fun run” many people areconfused of. The organizer hasclear life-and-deathresponsibility to make sure theconditions the runner will runare done properly. Obviously,they did not do their job properlyin the 34th Milo Marathon. Inmy opinion, being the father ofRemus, Milo marathonorganizers have failed my son. Itis their sheer incompetence andconsequently, the grossnegligence in their duty thatresulted in the death of Remus.”

My final recommendationis for the City and ProvincialYouth & Sports DevelopmentCouncils, from now and up tothe just before the date of theMilo Marathon in September,to conduct an information-education-communicationcampaign among theparticipants of the race. Andit would be even be better ifthey partner with theDepartment of EducationProvincial and City Divisionsin organizing a running clinicthat will prepare theparticipants for safe andsuccessful road racing. Thetragic incident narrated aboveis preventable. I hope the localorganizers will avoid themistakes committed by therace organizers in MetroManila.

S ixty-three days fromtoday (on Sept 19), the34th staging of one of the

elimination legs of the MiloMarathon will come toDumaguete City.

Below is what I receivedfrom the Runnex group email(http://www.pinoyfitness.com/2010/07/remus-story-as-told-by-his-father/) that Ithought I would share withlocal runners and organizers,and offer some advice toprevent a similar tragedyfrom happening here.

I have been a marathonrace organizer for some 30years now, and I haveacquired valuable insightsinto the responsibilities ofrace organizers, and whatshould be in place to insurethe safety of participants. Iknow City Youth &Sports Director Jose“Joe” Guirit is theorganizer of thelocal MiloMarathon, assistedby DepEdpersonnel, and since thistragic happening was notpublished in the tri-media,but reported only in severalmarathon running websites,I hope Joe will take all thenecessary precautions toprevent a similar incidentfrom happening in ourlocality initiated five yearsago.

“Remus Fuentes died ofmultiple organ failures as aresult of heatstroke two daysafter he ran the 21K in therecent 34th Milo Marathonlast Sunday, July 4, 2010. Hisdeath was the result of fatalmistakes, sheerincompetence, and grossnegligence in the eventorganized by the organizingteam. In marathon, the risk ofheatstroke is much higher forthe following reasons:

“1. The long distance runneraims for shorter time as a goal andtherefore motivated to keep asustained effort… (I alwaysadvise runners to have fun andenjoy the run. I discourageany attempt to improve one’spersonal best or personalrecord. In fact, I tell runnersto run slow, “the slower, thebetter”).

“2. Furthermore, the targetminimum time set by theorganizer adds more to themotivation to run faster. The cut-off time added more pressure tothe marginal marathon runner,meaning if you are used to runabove the target time, thetendency is to do better time,probably at pace unproven byyour body in practice. MiloMarathon set the target for 21Kmedal at 2 ½ hours or less. Remuscollapsed at near 20th km. with atime of 2 hours and 10 minuteswhen his previous record was 2hours and 27 minutes. (I amagainst prescribing a

Heat stroke andmarathon running

Cong. Henry Pryde Teveshas committed to supportthe Negros Oriental Councilof the Boy Scouts of thePhilippines, particularly inits community reforestationprogram.

Teves made the statementin his speech duringFriday's Annual LocalCouncil Meeting at the BSP

Headquarters.Teves said he may again

be given the chairmanshipof the Committee on RuralDevelopment, which willallow him to highlight theBoy Scouts reforestationproject he funded two yearsago in barangay Baslay inDauin town. This BSP TreePlanting project has also

unyielding to the touch,concrete, glass, metal, brick.Mansion or nippa hut —wherever these boys live,certainly does not resemblethis place. It was not

designed with them in mind.It was not designed withanyone in particular inmind.

Coming from America,malls are impersonal spacesdesigned to attract genericconsumers. The concept wasso successful that they havesprouted all over the worldin more or less the same form.They are cool, clean,spacious, simple inappearance, easilyaccessible — like cell phonesand computers. Andtogether with cell phones

and computers, they formthe universal look of modernlife, no different in NewJersey, New Delhi, or NegrosOriental. The peoplewalking about in them alllook about the same as well,most of them wearing thestandard world uniform oft-shirts and jeans.

But people around theworld are not the same. Inspite of “globalization”,what people want and thinkand do in New Jersey is verydifferent from they do here.These boys go to the mall,and use their cell phonesand computers in thesehuge spaces at high speed— not to search for newinformation or discussworld events, but to say thesame things, make the samearrangements they alwaysdid in Dumaguete.

Even so, they areincreasingly attracted by anenvironment that hasnothing to do with who theyare, and they are lost in it.What this will do to theirthoughts and feelings asthey grow up is hard to say.On the lower left in thispicture is a photo exhibitshowing a traditional scene,a woman holding a child bythe sea at sunset. The boysaren’t looking at it; it’s nottheir world. Their world isthe mall.

been replicated in barangaySilab in Amlan town withthe support of Rep. GeorgeArnaiz.

Under Teves'stewardship of theCommittee on RuralDevelopment, ruralirrigation got a boost with anadditional P50 millionfunding.

LABOR....FROM P. 1

Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress ofthe Phi lippines and theAll iance of Progress iveLabor ShembergIndependent EmployeesUnion cited various factorscontributing to theirmiserable plight, such as theunstable oil price hikes, theincreasing consumer priceindex, increasing cost ofliving, high inflation rate,poss ible increase intransport fare, increase inelectricity and water ratesand in prices of other basiccommodities.

Labor lawyer WhelmaYap, representing somebusiness establishments inthe City, said her clients areproposing a balancebecause both labor and theemployers are  feeling thepains of the global financialcrisis.

Ramon del Prado of theNegros Or iental PlantersAssociation said it is not the

r ight t ime for any wageincrease in the labor -intensive sugar industry,especia lly when El Niñostruck last year and affectedtheir yield. He also said thatthe Sugar Regula toryAdministration has alreadypredicted a drop in sugarproduction this year.

 ”The bes t solut ion i ssomething that labor andmanagement will not like,”Regional Tripartite Wagesand Productivity Boardregiona l cha irman El iasCayanong sa id a t aconsultation in Dumagueteon the pet it ions of twolabor organizations in theregion recently.

Cayanong said that afterall the stakeholders havesubmitted their respectiveposition papers, the boardwil l come up with WageOrder No. 15 to beimplemented s tar t ingAugust this year, if there areno appeals, or motions forreconsideration. (PNA/JG)

METROPOST JULY 18 - JULY 24, 2010

3NEWS and UPDATES

NegOr has highestmalnutrition rate in CV

A P3 million worth of check for the Oscar LopezDistinguished Professorial Chair in Energy Engineering funddonation was officially turned over to Silliman University in aceremonial rites on July 12 at the Luce Auditorium.

A professorial chair in energy engineering in honor of OscarLopez, chairman of geothermal leader Energy DevelopmentCorp. awarded this fund to qualified student and faculty ofCollege of Engineering to conduct comprehensive researchesand studies on geothermal and renewable energy.

Lopez said this professorial chair is in support of itscontinuing effort to help the university in providing excellenteducation to students and nurture a new generation of engineerthat contributes energy development.

Silliman University President Dr. Ben S. Malayang IIIreceived the check along with the two copies of books onwatersheds and trees that promote environmental protection.

In his message, Dr. Malayang expressed Silliman’s gratitudefor recognizing the University’s strength in advocatingsustainable energy development to Oscar Lopez and family.He also said the donation supports the University’s mission ofpromoting the welfare and development of the College ofEngineering through making its programs contribute inaddressing the environmental issues and concerns.

The two books, Trees of Tropical Asia written by Harvardeducated James La Frankie, and Watersheds Sheltering Life onthe 20 major watersheds in the country published by theNational Power Corp. with the help of 45 organizations citeEDc’s watershed management efforts in its geothermal projectsites.

The publication of the books were supported by EDC chairto inspire partner organizations to promote environmentalprotection and also distributed to universities and colleges inEDC’s host provinces within the areas of EDC operation. (PIA/JCT)

EDC, FirstGen donateProfessorial Chair to SU

CAMPUS NEWS

Negros Orientalregistered the highestmalnutrition prevalencerate among the provinces inRegion 7 for 2009.

Records from theregional office of theDepartment of Health showthat Negros Oriental holdsthe top spot in malnutritionprevalence rate in the regionwith 11.31 percent, followedby Cebu with 9.46 percent,Bohol with 8.12 percent, andSiquijor with 7.99 percent.

The first four cities withthe highest malnutritionrates in the region are alsoin Negros Oriental withCanlaon City posting 11.34percent, followed byBayawan City with 10.62percent, Bais City with 10.2

Oscar Lopez, president of the Energy Development Corp. and FirstGen (5th from right), accompanied by his wife, sons andgrandchildren, turns over an oversized replica of the P3 million check to SU President Dr. Ben Malayang III in ceremonies atthe Luce Auditorium, which was also attended by other officials of SU and EDC.

Colegio de Sta. Catalina de Alejandria (COSCA) has startedto beef up its campaign to expand the network of the College ofBusiness Education by actively participating in variousconferences such as the Regional Retailing Conference at theCebu Parklane Hotel.  The move is part of COSCA PresidentRev. Fr. Thadeu Enrique Balongag support for the College’splans and programs to achieve a competitive advantage.

The recent conference in Cebu was facilitated by topnotchresource speakers from various retailing Industries and othersectors.  Former Budget Secretary and current UP School ofEconomics professor. Dr. Benjamin E. Diokno spoke onEconomic Challenges for the New Administration.  Other topicssuch as Product Branding, Blue Ocean Strategy, The Power ofStore Design, Experiential Retailing (Creating A VibrantShopping Venue for the Consumer),  were delivered by thechief executive officers from The French Baker Inc., Ayala MallsGroup, Thirsty Juices & Drinks, Olivares & Associates.

Ramon F. Sun, Marketing lecturer at COSCA, attended theconference and intends to echo to the students what he gatheredfrom the meeting. Sun’s participation in various marketingconferences will boost the Business Education program atCOSCA.

COSCA  strengthensbusiness educ

Municipal Circuit TrialCourt Judge AntonioAlcantara (left) administersthe oath of office of thefour newly-electedmembers of the NegrosOriental Boy Scouts CouncilExecutive Board: WilkieMatiao, Dr. Rosela Cid,Dionisio Ramirez, andAlexander Kong III at theclose of Friday’s annualCouncil meeting.

Many first-time visitors to Dumaguete have been heard toadmire the city's beauty and express a desire to stay longer.

Takeshi Maruyama, from the Yamaguchi Prefecture inn o r t h e r nJapan, is noexception. Hehad beencoming to theP h i l i p p i n e severy year forthe last 16years but all ittook for thispotter fromJapan was justone visit toDumaguete in2008 to guest ina terracottac o n v e n t i o nand he wascaptivated byDumaguete'scharm.

"I likedDumaguete somuch that Idecided I wantto dos o m e t h i n gh e r e , "Maruyama said.

Maruyama's opportunity came when he was invited byFoundation University to teach the pottery class, which heimmediately accepted.

"Pottery skills are not popular in the Philippines, especiallythe glazed or high-fire pottery," he said, adding that he wasimpressed with FU's gas kiln, which was set up by theDepartment of Science and Technology. "FU has almost allfacilities which are in very good condition," he said.

For the month of June, Maruyama's class had been learninghow to form various shapes out of clay, the same lessons helearned at the age of 29 -- a good 34 years ago. He meets his 25students twice a week, from 1 to 5 p.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Maruyama, who had held a two-month one-man exhibit atthe GSIS Museum in Manila in 2002, is also a poet. He will leavefor India in October to attend a poetry convention and comeback to resume his teaching tasks at Foundation University.

Japanese artist teachespottery at FU

percent and Tanjay Citywith 6.42 percent. Cebu cityfollowed with 5.68 percentwhile the city with thelowest prevalence rate isLapu-Lapu City with 1.45percent.

Although the province’sprevalence rate is the highestin the region last year,records also show that themalnutrition rate here havebeen dropping regularlysince 2007, said Dr. ParolitaMission, regional nutritionprogram coordinator ofDOH-7, during the recentKapihan forum conductedby the PhilippineInformation Agency here.

In 2007, the province’smalnutrition rate waspegged at 11.88 percent. It

dropped to 11.57 percent in2008 and went down againto 11.31 percent last year.

“Even if the malnutritionrate in Negros Oriental ishigh, we’re happy that it hasmaintained a downwardtrend in the past three years.Even if the decrease has beenslight, it’s still a decrease,”said Mission.

The low rates of thetowns here also made it tolast year’s top tennutritionally depressedmunicipalities in the region.Vallehermoso ranked no. 1with a 25.1 percentmalnutrition prevalencerate, followed by Mabinay atrank no. 3 with 17.6 percent.Guihulngan ranked no. 6

The ProvincialAgrarian Reform Office inNegros Oriental iscelebrating the first yearanniversary ofComprehensive AgrarianReform Program Extensionwith Reforms (CARPer)from July 12 to 19, 2010.

Looking back, CARPwas put to an end inDecember 2008 and theComprehensive AgrarianReform Program extensionwith reforms revived thecompulsory acquisitionwith a P150 billion budget.

The CARPer wassigned into law by formerPresident GloriaMacapagal Arroyo inAugust 2009, containingan extension budget forCARP especially on LandAcquisit ion andDistribution program forfive years starting July2009, and other neededreforms to complete theacquisit ion anddistr ibution of theremaining one millionhectares of privateagricultural lands tolandless farmers.

The anniversaryactivit ies included athanksgiving mass, bloodletting, parlor games, treeplanting in Bais, a sportsfest on DAR EmployeesDay, and a Gender andDevelopment Forum.(Aileen Villaseca/DAR)

DARmarks

CARPeranniversary

Provincial Gov. AgustinPerdices created a specialcommittee within theProvincial Tourism Counciltask to look for ways andmeans to make SidlakangNegros Village efficient.

Governor Perdicesassigned the committee todesign new and moreexciting activities in thevillage as he received reportsthat some LGU booths areused only as lodging orsleeping quarters bystudents from othermunicipalities.

Of the 26 LGU booths inthe village including theSiquijor, so far only 6 boothsof Tanjay City , Sibulan,Zamboanguita, DumagueteCity , Tayasan, andManjuyod are operating forthe purpose or displayingits own products.

Gov forms Sidlakansuper committee

As we recall LGU boothswere built under theadministration of the lateGov. Emilio Maciasintended to be self-generating income facilitiesfor the respective LGUswhile promoting all year-round the province’stourism, culture and arts.

The ProvincialGovernment has establishedthe Sidlakang NegrosVillage , a permanent placefor the different events andfestivals and for the purposeof attracting more tourists tocome and visit.

In a meeting with theNegros Oriental TourismCouncil, Governor Perdicesappointed General ManagerEsperato Dicen of theDumaguete City WaterDistrict to head thecommittee along with

Provincial Director JavierFortunato of Department ofTrade & Industry, and EdDu of Steds as members.

The committee isexpected to make most of thevillage as a center of anactivity that can sustain andprofitable all year-round notonly during the BuglasanFestival celebration inOctober.

In the same conference,NOTC Chair Dr. NicholElman briefed the Governoralong with the new membersof the tourism council,Provincial AdministratorPaulino Honculada andRodrigo Lagahit on thecontinuing preparation ofactivities for the BuglasanFestival celebration.

Dr. Elman cited to theGovernor some new majorevents added for this year’scelebration such as theNegros Oriental ServiceAward, Pista sa Nayon,Kasikas sa Kalye, amongothers.

This year’s BuglasanFestival is expected to bemore significant asDumaguete City will host the3,000 athletes for Unigameson the same schedule of thecelebration. (PIA/JCT)

TO PAGE 8

OPINION and EDITORIALSE D I T O R I A L

4

METROPOST

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JULY 18 - JULY 24, 2010

Broken promiseIt’s that time of the year again when

labor and management tackle theticklish wage issue. It’s a no-brainer whylabor will always want a wage increasewhile management will always findways to prevent one.

The Arroyo administration, after all,had trumpeted a 7.3 percent economicgrowth in the first quarter of2010. Exports grew by more than 30percent. Same with sales of cars andmotorcycles. But in Dumaguete andNegros Oriental, all we’ve seen so farare the mushrooming of stores,restaurants and hotels, supporting theretail economy.

Well, yes, the Business ProcessOutsourcing (BPO) sector has shownsome growth, which, in turn, supportsthe services sector.

But where is the money for the workersin the Industry and Agriculture sectors,which in 2009 grew only by -2 and .1percent respectively? It would bedifficult to mandate a wage increase inthese sectors, as to do so would be akinto squeezing blood from stone.

The task of improving the lot of thelaborers is not a job of managementalone. Government has to do its sharein ensuring a better life for everyone —in the delivery of basic health care,education, infrastructure, disasterpreparedness, and improved foodproduction.

The government had promised fivemillion jobs in 2010. That would be morethan enough to employ the 2.8 millionunemployed Filipinos as of January. Butin April, the number of unemployedincreased by 200,000, bringing the totalnumber of unemployed people to threemillion. And we’re not even talking ofthe underemployed, which number 20percent of the workforce.

So the pressure to produce more moneyfor the family falls on the people whoremain in the workforce. And, in turn,they ask their employers to increase theirpay because times are getting harder.The demand for a pay increase could beup to P128 across-the-board.

What to do? Should management cometo the rescue at the risk of sacrificingprofitability? 

Perhaps, government should be madeto account for their broken promisesbefore any wage hike is considered. 

CEBU CITY—“Where arethey?” That stark question,painted on top of theRedemptorist Church’sbulletin board, jolted peopleas they filed in for Sundaymass.

The wife and I studied thefaded black-and-white photoof the smiling priest, on amotorcycle at the church’sbulletin board. Newerphotos, some in color, wereof even moreyouthful faces.“They’re youngerthan our children,”she noted.

The one-day exhibitmarked the 25th anniversaryexhibit of Redemptorist Fr.Rudy Romano’s abduction inCebu. Other “disappeared”(desaparecidos) were alsoremembered: activist JonasBurgos, Benedictine deaconCarlos Tayag, UP studentsErlinda Capdapan, andConcepcion Empeno LeviYbanez, among others.

Under Marcos’dictatorship, the Philippines“became a gulag of safehouses”, AmnestyInternational noted.“Members of the ArmedForces…were responsible foracts of unusual brutality”.Over 35,000 men and womenwere savaged.

“The evil that men do livesafter them.” Years after the

VIEWPOINTJUAN L. MERCADO

juanlmercado@gmail.com

TO PAGE 6

Caves have alwaysfascinated people. Inthe past, especially

during wartimes, caves wereused as hiding places fromenemies. People explorecaves in search of buriedtreasures, or to gather guanofertilizer.

In the Philippines, vandalshave invaded caves to collectstalactites and stalagmites forsale as decoration materials.

Spelunkers have exploredcaves for recreation. In rareinstances, people have usedcaves for worship. Presently,caves have been promoted astourist attractions.

But the scientific study ofcaves, speleology, hasattracted fewer academicpeople, and cave studies arenot popular even amongprofessional biologists in thePhilippines.

Among those studyingcaves are biologistsinterested in specific groupsof vertebrates.M a m m a l o g i s t s ,ornithologists, andherpetologists have beenstudying cave fauna in thePhilippines for some time.

More recently, biologyfaculty members of somecolleges and universities haveexplored caves for their

The stones cry out

dictatorship collapsed,vulnerable mothers of thedisappeared still scourmorgues, hospitals, prisons,looking for their children.Military camps stonewallwith denials, despite the newwrits of amparo and habeas data.

As always, “the struggle ofpeople against power is thestruggle of memory againstforgetting,” the Czech writerMilan Kundera said.

“Partly hidden from viewby dirt, clay pots, andornamental plants, themarker in Cebu City reads:“Here marks the place whereFr. Rudy Romano, aRedemptorist father andhuman rights fighter, wasabducted by armed men of thedeposed Marcos regime onJuly 11, 1985.”

“The day the marker wasinstalled, 6,000 watched thereenactment of the priest’sabduction,” Sun Star’sLorenzo Ninal writes.“Occasionally, somebodystops by, says a short prayer,and drives on.” But most ofthe time, the place is wherejeepneys stop to pick uppassengers.”

Back in July 11,1985, awhite Cortina sporting a

government license plate,blocked Father Romano.Armed men on two othermotorcycles swerved in. Theybundled the priest inside thecar and sped away.

There has been no trace ofFather Romano since, likemost other of the“disappeared”. None hasbeen convicted. Filipinocommunists shrug aside pleasfrom relatives of victims in

their pogroms.What does

this all mean?“A nation in

search of FatherRudy, is a nation in search ofitself,” Mary Aileen Bacalso ofthe Asian Federation AgainstDisappearances wrote earlier.Over 1,716 similar cases,spanning fiveadministrations…is awounding reminder of ourcallousness.”

Yet, hope is resurging. Athis first military commandconference, President Aquinounderscored respect forhuman rights.

“With the new Aquinoadministration, there’s freshhope that justice will beserved and truth will finallycome out,” Fr. Ricky Acerosaid. There had to be“closure” for theRedemptorist community tomove on in their work amongthe poor.

Forgiveness, however,does not extinguishaccountability. “Men areunable to forgive what theycan not punish,” HannahArendt stresses in her essayon Nazi terror.

Was OmbudsmanMerceditas Gutierrezlistening? She’s reeling fromcharges of misusing her officeto shield former PresidentGloria Macapagal Arroyoand spouse against sleazecharges: from the ZTEbroadband scandal, to riggedroad construction bids. EarlyJuly, she absolved herpatrons, plus 16 others inwhistleblower Rodolfo “Jun”Lozada’s abduction.

But listen to what UNSpecial Rapporteur onExtrajudicial Execution PhilipAlston says: “TheOmbudsman’s office… failedto act in any of the 44complaints allegingextrajudicial executionsattributed to State agentssubmitted from 2002 to 2006.”

“There is a passivity,bordering on an abdication ofresponsibility,” Alstonadded. “(It) affects the way inwhich key institutions andactors approach theirresponsibilities in relation tosuch human rightsconcerns…”

We do not havepermanent memorials.Cambodia’s Choeung Ekcontains the graves of 8,895 inwhat were once its killingfields. Yet, “nations areconstructed on the basis ofgreat rememberings andgreat forgettings,” ErnestRenan wrote.

The Redemptorists have

vertebrate and invertebratefaunas under theCommission on HigherEducation program onbiodiversity. Initial resultsseem promising.

Scientists at the PhilippineMuseum have made diggingsin some caves in Quezon,Palawan to study fossils andarchaeological artifactsduring the mid-1900s.

Dr. Robert Foxand his colleaguestraced the historyof the early humanpopulations that migrated tothe Philippines from Borneoduring the period ofmaximum regression of thesea 20,000 years ago.

At least another Americanpaleontologist studied thehard parts of animals used asfood by these early humancave dwellers.

During the past 60 years,Silliman Universitybiologists have beenexploring the mammal, bird,reptile, and amphibian faunasin caves in the CentralVisayas.

Thus far, one new speciesof fruit-eating bat (Dobsoniachapmani) has been found incaves in southern Negros. Thisspecies is no longer found incaves, its original habitat, in

the 2000s, but a remnantpopulation in southwesternNegros has been found livingin trees with thick growths ofa species of aerial ferns,probably as a result of thedisturbance of their cavehabitats by humans. This fruitbat is really an endangeredspecies.

Among the herpetofauna,which includessnakes and lizards,are frogs mostlybelonging to thegenus Platymantis

(Family Cerobatrachidae).Thus far, four species, all

new species, have beendescribed, and at least twomore possibly new specieshave not yet been studied ordescribed, and most probably,more will turn out to be newfrom more caves as yetunexplored.

Lizards of the genus Gekkoinclude a couple of specieswhich need systematicreviews of their phylogeneticpositions in evolution.

It is not yet clear whetherthese four described species offorest frogs and others still tobe described, as well as thegeckos, evolved in the cavesthey now inhabit, or if theyevolved in forests aroundthese caves but expanded theirpopulations to cave habitats.

From what we knowabout the Philippineenvironment, tropicalrainforests used to occupysome 80 to 90 percent of theland area of the Philippinesin the remote past beforehumans settled and clearedthe forests.

More studies are needed.But it is clear that thedescribed frog and reptilespecies occupy only the first10m or so from the caveopenings, making it probablethat the range expansionhypothesis is what actuallyhappened.

Further, all these cavespecies do not show reductionor lack of normal eyes, whichare characteristic of cavespecies that evolved insidecaves.

Whatever is theexplanation, it is clear thatsome cave species, notably theinsectivorous bats and swiftsthat live in caves, are veryuseful to the ecology ofcultivated species used byhumans. These bats and birdsfeed on millions of insects,some of which are pests, andconvert them to guano usedfor fertilizing the farms. Thisfact is lost to many of ourpeople who persecute theselowly creatures by killingthem directly, disturbingthem, or destroying their cavehabitats.

It is time to rethink andchange human unkindness toour fellow creatures. I suggestthat our environmentaladvocacy groups add caveanimals to the list of creaturesworthy of saving for thefuture.

Caves

ENVIRONMENTCONNECTION

DR. ANGEL C. ALCALA

suakcrem@yahoo.com

METROPOST JULY 18 - JULY 24, 2010

OPINION and EDITORIALS 5

Looking back, sittingthere outside Dencio’sin Harbor Square, a

stone’s throw away from theCultural Center of thePhilippines, it felt good to bejust a mere spectator for once.Because last year, in theCinemalaya, I was part of itsFilm Congress as arepresentative of thefilmmaking scene inDumaguete—and it was theusual part work, partpleasure. This year, it wasall pure pleasure.

Get this: I was drinkingSan Miguel Lite with thescreenwriter Armando Lao.

Earlier that weekend, Ihad planed in fromDumaguete just for theCinemalaya and to processmy U.S. visa for myfellowship in theInternational WritersProgram in Iowa. It was thestart of ag o o dweekend,and thefilm festival—the mostacclaimed of its kind thispart of the Philippines—hadjust began.

People I know from filmwere suddenly everywhere.I’ve always loved this kindof Manila trips that I take;they are always occasionsfor instant reunions. Peopleyou only see in Facebook aresuddenly there in front ofyou, in the flesh. And thehugs and the handshakesare constant, they flyeverywhere.

That Saturday, I hadgone to the launch of threebooks being put out bynewbie publisher GilbertSape of Grey MatterPublishing—two of them bygood friends of mine, peopleI “hang” out with in theblogging world. There’sDear Migs: Letters to theManila Gay Guy by “Migs”and edited by PhilippineDaily Inquirer theater criticGibbs Cadiz, and thenthere’s The Wet Book: StoriesFrom the Bathhouse by JoelMacaventa, alias McVie,and edited by the filmproducer and writerRaymond Red. The launchwas in Quezon City—andthe place, which was thestudio of the photographerIan Felix Alquiros, waspacked. I met old friends andnew—the writers J. NeilGarcia, Moki Villegas, andRonald Baytan, the visualartist Daniel Palma Tayoma,

TEMPEST IN ACOFFEEMUG

IAN ROSALES CASOCOT

icasocot@gmail.com

When Gov. Agustin“Tuting” Perdices,together with

Cong. George Arnaiz andtheir staff, went on aninspection tour of“Highway 2000”, analternative highway alongthe mountain, parallel to thecurrent national highwayand which connects the

towns and cities of theProvince, it was a goodomen of things to come.

“Highway 2000” is anongoing project started bythe late Gov. Emilio ‘Dodo”Macias II, and will probablybe realized and completedduring the term of GovernorTuting.

This is significantbecause Governor Tuting isshowing he is of the new

ECON 101ATTY. WHELMA SITON-YAP

whelmayap@yahoo.com

HOUSEWIVESON THE MOVE

OLGA LUCIA ALINAS-UY

olgaluciauy@yahoo.com

REV. BERNADETTE AMISTOSO-MORALES

THEFORERUNNERpastorbernie@yahoo.com

JN 19:38 Later, Joseph ofArimathea asked Pilate for thebody of Jesus. Now Joseph was adisciple of Jesus, but secretlybecause he feared the Jews. WithPilate’s permission, he came andtook the body away. 39 He wasaccompanied by Nicodemus, theman who earlier had visited Jesusat night…

Very little is known inthe Bible aboutJoseph from

Arimathea, a small city locatedin Judea, Jerusalem. Just likeNicodemus, anotherprominent man named in theGospel of John, Joseph ofArimathea wasalso a member ofthe Sanhedrin.This was thehighest Jewishtribunal, equivalent to aJewish supreme court duringthe time of Christ.

What we know fromMatthew is that Joseph ofArimathea was an affluentman. This explains why heowned a beautiful gardentomb where Jesus was buriedafter he died from crucifixion.(MT 27:57).

What we know from Markis that he was waiting for thekingdom of God. This showsus his religious zeal and hisspiritual steadfastness. (Mark15: 43).

What we know from Lukeis that he was an upright man.He enjoyed a favorable,wholesome and positivereputation in the community.This is also the very reasonwhy he did not agree with theSanhedrin’s decision toconvict Jesus, an innocent manof crimes he did not commit. (LK 23:50).

What John mentions is thathe was a secret follower of the

Lord. This shows that despitethe positive aspects of hischaracter, Joseph of Arimatheafeared public opinion. Hecould not openly stand by hisown, personal convictionsabout Christ. (John 19:38.)

You see, Joseph ofArimathea was part of acomplex and powerfulreligious circle that openlycriticized and rejected theteachings of Christ. For manyof them, Jesus was a heretic.For some of them, Jesus waseven demon-possessed.

In short, Joseph ofArimathea knew that

becoming identified with JesusChrist was too precarious andtoo risky. It would complicatehis otherwise peaceful,comfortable and quietexistence. And so for allpractical reasons andintentions, and because ofgreat fear of the religiousmajority, Joseph of Arimatheatook the safest and mostharmless road of all — hefollowed Jesus in secret.

FearJN 19:38 … Now Joseph was

a disciple of Jesus, but secretlybecause he feared the Jews. Fearis the feeling of dread, terrorand panic. Fear is one thegreatest reasons why manyoften choose the path of leastresistance.

This is also known as thePrinciple of Least Effort. Thisphraseology is used in libraryscience and research. Thisprinciple states that regardlessof one’s skill and proficiencyas a searcher, or regardless oftheir level of subject expertise,

a person seeking informationwill always use research toolsthat are most familiar, mostconvenient, and most easy touse.

But you see, just like theexperience of Joseph ofArimathea, change isinevitable. There will come atime when we will realize thatthe path of least effort is nolonger the wisest, the mostmeaningful, and the mostrelevant path to take. And soafter being a secret followerof Jesus, Joseph of Arimathea,stirred and convicted by thecourage and righteousness of

Jesus, rose up oneday, risked all hehad, and openlyaligned himselfwith Christ.Faith

v. 18 With Pilate’s permission,he came and took the body away.Faith, in the context of Josephof Arimathea’s experience,means rising up in courage tomake a stand for Christ. Itmeans taking a posture ofcourage and righteous action.

During the time of Christ,the remains of an executedcriminal were often leftunburied or at least, put in apauper’s field. In some cases,a near relative such as amother would ask permissionfor the body.

While the rest of thedisciples and close associatesof Jesus were hiding in fear fortheir lives, Joseph ofArimathea, finally stood infaith. He came forward to dowhat was right — to give Jesusa decent and honorable burial.Using very wisely his powerand religious influence, hedemonstrated an unexpectedgesture of faith and courage.

The secret disciple

the director Jade Castro ofEndo fame, the TVbroadcasters RG Cruz andRyan Edward Chua, amongmany others. Hugs,handshakes. I see CarloVergara, the writer of ZsaZsaZaturnnah—and we exclaim:“Finally!” Another round ofhugs.

Then it was back toManila, to the lovely SyquiaBuilding near Malate, whereI dined on varieties of cheeseand wine and cold cuts inthe beautiful apartment ofthe director Butch Perez. Hehad a great view of theManila Bay, and heentertained us—the writersGinny Mata, Kit Kwe, MarcEscalona Gaba, and KrisLacaba—to the disco beat ofDavid Byrne and FatboySlim’s Imelda musical HereLies Love. We talked aboutIowa winters and Negrense

Chinese matriarchs withrecipes, and the lives andloves of people we know.The usual stuff.

On Sunday, there was thelate night beer with Bing Lao.

“You are a god,” I hadtold Bing earlier—acompliment he must get a lot.This is the screenplay writer,after all, of all thoseacclaimed movies, fromJeffrey Jeturian’s Pila Baldeand Sana Pag-ibig Na andKubrador to BrillanteMendoza’s Serbis andKinatay, those controversialCannes Film Festivalwinners that has brought tothe world a concept of filmwriting that is gainingtraction the way the Danishhad with its Dogme 95. InBing’s case, it is the FoundStory concept that is centralto the style of such emergingfilmmakers as Francis X.Pasion, Jay Altarejos,Jeturian, and Mendoza,among others.

He had been goingaround the CCP complexamong the throng thatconstituted the devotees ofthe Cinemalaya FilmFestival, filming MarkXander Fabillar (who has asupporting turn in Halo-Halo) and Jay Altarejos asthey went about their waywelcoming people to thegala premiere of Jay’s latestfilm, Pink Halo-Halo. It wasgoing to be a kind of pseudo-documentary, and I was in

the middle of the shoot. Later,after the premiere, the beercame, and the talk andbanter.

People came and went.Joel Torre passed by.Raymond Red stopped by,and I told him, “When areyou going to finish Patayinsa Shokot si Remington? Ican’t wait to see it na.” Helaughed and did a shortcurtsy. That was it. Thedirector Raya Martin alsopassed by, sporting a newlook of cropped hair. “Whendid you come back?” I askedhim, “I thought you wereholed up somewhere inParis or wherever.” Wehugged, and he said, “I’mjust here, just lying low.” Ilaughed.

The female lead of Halo-Halo, the wonderful AngeliBayani, soon joined us—and it was the start of the

marathonto a long,beauti fu ln i g h t

where everybody pitched into share “talk” and industrytidbits, all told in gesturesand enunciations of granddrama. You know, theaterand film people.

I called her the newMeryl Streep. And Angeliblushed. She wastranscendent in Pink Halo-Halo, a film of such beautifulsimplicity that I turned to Jay,who was sitting beside mein the Tanghalang NicanorAbelardo, and said, “I hateyou. Pinaiyak mo ako.” And Ithought of that, and wasbemused by how far Jay hadcome—from the titillationsof Ang Lalake sa Parola andAng Lihim ni Antonio to thegrit and passion of Ang Larosa Buhay ni Juan to the heartof Pink Halo-Halo. Becausesometimes it’s hard whenyou find yourself put in a boxby other people—and notallowed to be anything more.“Hindi ka na bold gay films!”the magnificent Ed de losSantos Cabagnot had toldhim earlier, and broke intoboisterous laughter.

We all laughed, too.And that was it that

weekend. Those nights.With Manila friends.

And then, two days later,I escaped Typhoon Basyangby minutes, and planed allthe way back to my Negrostown, where everything isquieter. Quiet, yes—but ithas also become a reservoirof so much missing otherpeople not here.

Eating pink halo-halo

Gov. Tuting Perdices road map

wave of socially-responsivepoliticians, holistic andaltruistic in his commitmentto sustainable development.

He will not abandonprojects just because anotherpolitician had started it. Hewill evaluate a project, andpush through what is goodfor the many.

This kind of leadership is

new and innovative, asshown in his sorties to themunicipalities, the lying-inclinic in Bacong with thecooperation of Mayor LeninAlviola, inspection of theNegros Oriental ProvincialHospital with Dr. Felix Syacknowledging the supportof Governor Perdices in theproposed expansionbuilding, and the programsin the 1st District together

with Cong. JosyLimkaichong.

Governor Tuting hasprovided a road map for hisachievements, and toparaphrase Michael Aiken’sstatement: “Planning is notsomething politicians dowell or willingly, but when Ihad to do a strategic plan, Iquickly found that it was a

way to unite people behinda set of goals, to take stock ofaccomplishments, and todetermine the key issues inyour organization.”

You’re doing well,Governor Tuting! Carry on!

Birthday greetings alsogo to the indefatigable Dr.Felix Sy, who just turned ayear wiser! Here’s to morehappy years!

The never-endingbattle with the bulge

TO PAGE 6

What is it thatwomen of everyage, race, and creed

continue to obsess on? Whattopic would we invariably talkabout whenever we’d gettogether? What has caused, andis continuing to cause uswomen endless frustration anddissatisfaction the world over?What have we been battling,and kept losing to over andover again?

A woman reading thiswould have guessed already.Yes, it’s our figure, or morespecifically, our loss of figure.

Yeah, Iknow – sad,isn’t it? Wec o n t i n u a l l ylament overour bulges ...you know, thatthingy thatwe’d see right away when welook down? Yes, that thingy –also the culprit behind thoserolling undies. They really dostand out, do they? No amountof inhaling on our part couldkeep those tummies in.

The bulges are not that badthough. They can be a sourceof great amusement, but onlyif you have an irreverent kidlike mine. My brat loves tojiggle it, and watch it moveabout like jelly. That neverfails to bring out peals oflaughter ... joyful laughter fromher. Mine was more of theagonized kind. (sigh!)

And did you know that wealso have the much sought-after, macho male must-havesix- pack? Ahh! And youthought that it’s only TaylorLautner (Jacob of the Twilight saga)and his kind who have those!How wrong could you be?

Heavily-endowed ladieslike yours truly have those, too,

and more! But ours gotmisplaced. Somewhere alongthe way to our abs, our six-packchanged course, and found itsway into our backs. If you areone of those who now looks atyour image in the mirror withincreasing dismay, do this athome: put on a tight brassiereand a close-fitting shirt – thenlook at your back. You won’tmiss them.

But whether it’s the bulgeor the six-pack, our battle boilsdown to one thing: weight gain.This is a curse that most of usare born with. We only get toenjoy our slimmer selves for a

short while. After the babiesstart coming, off to heavyvillemost of us go.

Weight gain almost alwayscomes with motherhood andage. It is as inevitable as theonset of wrinkles and the whitehairs. But there are those of uswho hasten this processbecause of our passion for allthe sinful food out there!

Oh! If only there is fairnessin this world, the vegetablesand the fish would be thedefinite no-nos! Then we’d getto tell our children ... “No, youcannot eat vegetables ... theyare baaaad for your health!”Wouldn’t that be great? Thenchildren would joyfully eat“healthy” food.

I have been working out inthe gym these past five weeksbecause I finally admitted thatdieting alone wouldn’t get mewhere I want to be. I recentlyballooned to almost 180 lbs.after I’ve had another

pregnancy.In an effort to keep our baby

from being lost, I had to takeprednisone among othermedications. The steroids, plusmy mandatory bedrest, and allthe yummylicious food I coulddemand from my veryattentive and complianthusband all contributed intomaking me the female versionof the sumo wrestler.

My yo-yo dieting actuallyhelped me lose around 10 lbsat a time, but I gained backabout half of them in a matterof weeks because I didn’t doany exercise. So raised the

white flag I did.I draggedmyself into thegym, and witha heavy heart,I joined in.

And so, as Iagonized over the aches and thepains that come along with thegym scene, and as I counted offthe repetitions for the weightsthat got heavier by the second,my mind would wonder offsomewhere, and dream abouta parallel universe wherechewing is the only exercisethat we needed to do.

And if we wanted to go theextra mile, we could actuallyadd to our exercise routineusing only our thumbs as wepress the buttons in the remotecontrol. Yes, my like-mindedsisters, in my parallel world,the best exercise there is, islying on the bed comfortablypropped up by pillows as weface the TV while munching onfat-burning lechon skin.

Yes, if only the world werefair. But back to reality I mustreturn. My fantasies made melose count….How many legraises have I done already, bythe way?

METROPOST

6

RizalAve., Dumaguete CityTEL. NOS. 225-4491, 422-6933

Where dining is alwaysa pleasure!

G E M I N II N T E R N E T C A F E

Gemini Bldg., Real Street, Dumaguete City

DumagueteS U R F S T A T I O N#26 Katada Street, Dumaguete City

Tel. Nos. 422-6082, 225-8255

70 Rizal Boulevard,Dumaguete City

Tels. 225-7725, 422-9209,225-4488

JULY 18 - JULY 24, 2010

Republic of the PhilippinesRegional Trial Court of Negros Oriental

7th Judicial RegionBranch 63 Bayawan City

In re: Petition for judicial approval ofvoluntary recognition of a minor child withprayer for correction of entry in the CivilRegistry of minor Marfe Jhon QuinilitanRosell, as represented by his parents

Jose Ferdinan A. Rosell and Margie Q.Rosell, Petitioners-versus- Spec. Proc. No. 326The Local Civil Registrar of Quezon City,RespondentX - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -/

ORDERPetitioners in their petition, allege they are the parents of minor Marfe Jhon

Quinilitan Rosell, born on August 2, 1996 at Pingkian Village, Phase III, PasongTamo, Quezon City, whose facts of birth were duly recorded before the Office ofthe Local Civil Registrar of Quezon City, and when Petitioners were still bothsingle, and without legal impediments to marry each other but both are living ashusband and wife. That Petitioners discovered that in the certificate of live birthof their aforesaid minor son, the date of marriage of parents was entered as October10, 1995 at Quezon City when Petitioners were only married APRIL 28, 2003 inSta. Catalina, Negros Oriental; and the spelling of the name of father waserroneously entered as Ferdinand A. Rosell when his real name is JOSE FERDINANA. ROSELL, and Petitioners are voluntarily recognizing the child. Thus, thisPetition.

Being sufficient in form and substance, let the above petition be heard at theSession Hall of the Court along Severino “Nene” Martinez St., Bayawan City onJuly 30, 2010 at 8:30 in the morning. Interested persons are enjoined to appear onthe aforesaid place and time, and show cause why the Petition should not begranted.

Let this Order be published immediately, at the expense of the Petitioners, foronce a week for three consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation inthe Province of Negros Oriental and its five component cities.

Furnish copies to this Order to the Solicitor General, the Local Civil Registrarof Quezon City, the Petitioners and their counsel.

So ordered. In chamber. June 10, 2010. Bayawan City, Negros Oriental.

Ananson E. JaymeJudge

MetroPost July 11 • July 18 • July 25• 2010

N e w ly - i ns t a l l e dDumaguete CityMayor Manuel

“Chiquiting” Sagarbarriamet with the LocalInvestment Board to clarifythe seemingly-cloudedissues hovering above ourTax Investment Code(Ordinance No. 139).

M a y o rChiq ui t ingstressed thatthe investingcompany must have aP500,000,000 solid initialcapital upon its declarationof an investment to qualifyfor a five-year tax holiday.

Furthermore, the hiringof workers must meet therequired minimum numberof employees, and who mustall be permanent residentsDumaguete City.

Mayor Chiquitingemphasized that while it is

CITY HALLTIDBITS

LEO R. MACALIPAY

his desire to provide asmany job opportunities forthe people of Dumaguete aspossible, he will only do thiswithout jeopardizing theeconomic interests of theCity government.

The Local InvestmentBoard generally agreed thatthe basis for the granting of

tax incentives would bebased on a sound Business-Enhancing Approach ratherthan on a RegulatoryApproach.

This way, they said, theinterests of the businesssector, the people, and thatof government are equallymet and fairly protected.

At least I am confidentthat matters such as this arewell-thought out by an

active Local InvestmentBoard composed of CityAdministrator William E.Ablong, City Legal OfficerNeil Ray Lagahit, the CityAssessor’s Office, the CityTreasusrer’s Office, Trade &Industry Provincial DirectorJavier Fortunato Jr., Prof.Norma Casluscusan

representingt h eCooperativesector, and

the business sectorrepresented by Macrina R.Fuentes, Engr. Greg L.Uymatiao Jr., and EdwardDu.

Surely, a meeting ofminds among the membersof this Board to strengthenthe Tax Investment CodeNo. 139 will open doors togreater opportunities for ourpeople to enjoy.

Greater opportunities FU Quarter Marathon Club members who took part in the Planet Sports Run in Ceburecently: Daryl Impang, Marivel Alayon, Karen Bigay, Glene May Lusare, Joel Balajadia,Mark Besario, Shiloh Impang, Paultom Paras, with other Dumaguete-runners PatrickFortunato from UP Cebu, and PR Paras.  (Photo by Wilan Bigay)

VIEWPOINT....FROM P. 4

forgiven Fr. Romano’sabductors. So has EdithBurgos, whose son Jonas isstill missing.

“The weak can neverforgive,” Asian statesmanMahatma Ghandi once said.“Forgiveness is the attributeof the strong…(Even whenviolence appears) to do good,the good is only temporary.The evil it does ispermanent…”

A culture of impunity —where traitor, abductor ortorturer go free — does notemerge full-blown overnight.It builds up incrementally,stoked by official support,tolerance, and silence. “A manbegins to die the moment heremains silent about thingsthat matter,” Martin LutherKing warned.

That’s precisely the pointof Let the Stones Cry Out,published by the ProtestantNational Council of Churcheshere, this 83-page reportdocuments 836 politicallymotivated killings since 2001.

We do not havepermanent memorials. Yet, ina nation of deaf leaders, thereare signs the newadministration is aware thathere, “the stones cry out”.

FORERUNNER....FROM P. 5

He asked Pontius Pilate for thebody of Jesus, and togetherwith another secret discipleNicodemus, they performedthe required ritual ofpreparation before laying torest the early remains of theLord.

It was just a few hoursbefore sundown, the start ofthe Jewish Shabat (sabbath).Everthing had to be donequietly, swiftly, andhonorably. In another gesture

of faith, Joseph of Arimatheagoes the second mile. Afterwrapping the body of Jesus intraditional spies with theburial cloth, he offered anever-been used tomb in hisgarden to be the resting placeof Jesus’ remains, fulfilling anold testment prophecy that theanointed one of God willindeed be buried among therich.

Brothers and sisters, welearn from Joseph ofArimathea’s unique encounter

Republic of the PhilippinesRegional Trial Court

7th Judicial RegionBranch 45 Bais City

In the matter of correcting the entry ofthe birth record of Marvin delos ReyesY Calliet in the Office of the Local CivilRegistrar of Bais, Negros Oriental Spl. Poc. No. B-10-27

Marvin delos Reyes Callietas represented by her mother,Lydia delos Reyes Calliet, Petitioner-versus-Mary Jean V. Lado in her capacity as theLocal Civil Registrar of Bais, Negros Oriental.X - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - /

ORDERBefore this court is a verified petition for correction of entries in the birth

record of Marvin delos Reyes Calliet, filed through counsel Atty. Benjamin H.Lajot Jr., dated June 17, 2010, praying that after due notice, publication, and hearing,an Order shall issue directing the Office of the Local Civil Registrar of Bais City,Negros Oriental, to change the gender of Petitioner in her birth record from maleto FEMALE, and to direct herein Respondent to make the necessary correction inthe above-mentioned birth record its office.

Finding the petition to be sufficient in form and substance, the court sets theinitial hearing thereof on Sept. 21, 2010 at 8:30 in the morning, at the Session Hallof this Court at which date, time and place, all interested persons may appear andshow cause, if any, why the petition should not be granted.

Let this Order be published in a newspaper of general circulation in theprovince of Negros Oriental and its component cities once a week for at least threeconsecutive weeks, before the date of hearing.

Petitioner is hereby directed to furnish the Local Civil Registrar of Bais City,Negros Oriental of this Order with a copy of the petition and its annexes, and tothe Office of the Solicitor General with address at 134 Amorsolo St., LegaspiVillage, Makati City and show proof of service thereof.

So ordered. Bais City, Philippines, June 21, 2010.

Candelario V. Gonzalez.Judge

MetroPost July 11 • July 18 • July 25• 2010

Republic of the PhilippinesRegional Trial Court of Negros Oriental

7th Judicial RegionBranch 63 Bayawan City

In the matter of correction of entries asto sex from male to FEMALE, and first nameof mother from Bencedicta to BENEDICTA,and correction of entries by indicating themaiden middle name of mother as CAVILE,and middle name of father as MACION inthe records of birth of Nechell Cortez Ligutom Spec. Proc. No. 329

Nechell Cortez Ligutom, Petitioner-versus-The Local Cvil Registrar of Basay,Negros Oriental, RespondentX - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - /

ORDERPetitioner, a resident of Sangke, Bongalonan, Basay, Negros Oriental, in her

verified petition, alleges that she was born on April 25, 1986 in Basay, NegrosOriental, and her fact of birth was duly recorded before the Local Civil Registrarof Basay, Negros Oriental. However, her sex was entered as male instead ofFEMALE, the first name of her mother was entered as Bencedicta instead ofBENEDICTA, the maiden middle name of mother which is CAVILE is notindicated, and the middle name of the father which is MACION was likewise notindicated. Thus, this Petition.

The Petition, being sufficient in form and substance, let the same be heard onAug. 12, 2010 at 8:30 in the morning at the session hall of this court along Severino“Nene” Martinez St., Bayawan City. Interested parties are hereby enjoined toappear on the aforesaid date, time, and place, and show cause why the Petitionshould not be granted.

Let this Order be published at the expense of the Petitioner for once a week forthree consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the province ofNegros Oriental and its five component cities.

Furnish copies of this Order to the Solicitor General, the Local Civil Registrarof Basay, Negros Oriental, the Petitioner, and her counsel.

So ordered. In chamber, this 21st day of May, 2010v at Bayawan City, NegrosOriental.

Ananson E. JaymePresiding Judge

MetroPost July 18 • July 25 • August 1• 2010

National Master RolzonRoullo lived up to the billingas the tournament’s highestrated player, and emergedvictorious with 4.5 points inthis 25-man-field five-roundSwiss event.

Pamplona’s pride JunaicoSegismar was on the brink ofwinning over NM Roullo inthe fourth round whenSegismar’s human naturesuccumbed to “excitementdue to success”. Segismarthen overlook a simple trapand surrenderd the game.

For the other standings,three players landed withidentical four points.(Tiebreaker system resolvedthe final results with BobbyTorres as 2nd place, andGemon Tolentino, 3rd place.Tanjay City’s handicappedJeffrey Alcantara settled for

with Christ that God, in hisgrace and goodness, willprovide every opportunity forhis people to come forwardand cross over from fear tofaith. It is only necessary thatwhen these propheticmoments come, we do notshrink back but rise to theoccasion — we do not hide butstep out in faith, knowing thata secret disciple is no discipleat all!

Tanjay fiesta chess tourney4th place with a half-pointdifference in the tie-breaks.

In the 18 years-old andunder, Steve Ursua emergedchampion. Ursua, a junior atLegislated Tanjay HighSchool, gathered 4.5 pointsout of the possible five-roundSwiss event.

Four participants tied forthe second position withidentical four points.Tiebreaker system resolvedthe following final placers:Dhan Paul Aguilar emergedwith the highest tie-breakpoints, and won 2nd place.Aguilar is a freshmanCommunication student atthe Metro DumagueteCollege. Villa Mae Cabrerasettled for 3rd place. CecileReginaldo and Kirby Pinerosettled with lower tie-breakers to settle for the 4th

and 5th spots respectively.All the top three placers

in both categories were

awarded trophies and cashprizes from the Tanjay CityLGU headed by City MayorLawrence S. Teves through itsCity Sports Committeeheaded by Councilor PepeOrlino, who also awarded theprizes.

Meanwhile, the 5th DonTeroy Memorial Blitz Open isscheduled on July 31 at 9 a.m.at the Negros Club 64 IncHeadquarters at the Capitolarea. The one-day event willprovide 15 minutes per playerto finish a game. The annualcommemorative occasion isheld in honor of AsterSenador, one of the pillars ofchess development in NegrosOriental.

In addition, the monthlyOpen Blitz will resume onAug. 1st at 9 in the morning.The one-day event is jointlysponsored by Atty. CyrusRiconalla and Atty. AlfredoOrquillas Jr. (PR)

METROPOST JULY 18 - JULY 24, 2010

7

They were up before the Sunday sun last July 13 -- 64duathloners and over 500 runners, eager to join the LeandroG. Sinco Duathlon and Quarter Marathon. They startedarriving at the Robinson's Mall Dumaguete by 5 a.m. andimmediately started to do warm-up exercises for thegruelling route that would take them across DumagueteCity and up to the mountains of Sibulan and Valenciatowns.

This was the first-ever duathlon to be held in Dumaguete,which was timed for the 61st Founding Anniversarycelebration of Foundation University. The 38.5 kilometerroute consisted of a run three times around Robinson's Mallcovering a distance of 2.1 kilometers, then a 35-kilometerbike ride and, after returning to where they started, runanother two rounds around the Mall, covering another 1.4kilometers.

Due to the limited time to prepare for the race, there wasonly one duathlon contestant from outside of NegrosOriental. Oscar Margen Jr., from Bacolod City, eventuallyplaced 3rd in the Men's Fun Bike category. Most, if not allduathlon participants, were mountain bikers from theNegros Oriental Biker's Association, the Oriental NegrosBikers, and independent bikers who had spent the past fewweeks practicing their running skills at the PerdicesMemorial Coliseum.

Their participation in the duathlon was in response tothe sports column of Dr. Aparicio Mequi in the DumagueteMetroPost (www.DumagueteMetropost.com) that saidbikers need to complement their exercise by walking orrunning.

By 6 a.m., the starting gun went off, sending all theparticipants in the duathlon and the quarter marathonrunning, escorted by the Traffic Management Group as theymade their way out to the streets.

After about one hour of biking, the male duathlonerscame riding back to the Robinson's Mall, where they hungtheir bikes and ran the remaining 2.1 kilometers.

The quarter marathon, on the other hand, had about 500runners competing in various categories. There was also acategory for children with disabilities (CWDs).

The winners of the various categories

President Mira D. Sincohas exhorted freshmen andtransferees to give their fouror five-year stay inFoundation University theirbest shot.

In her speech during theAcademic OpeningConvocation of the Class of2014 "The Transformers"last July 9 at the Sofia SollerSinco Hall, Dr. Sinco saidthat unlike

Taking off from thelegendary immortal wordsof a World War II leader, whosaid, "Never, ever give up!"Dr. Sinco told the studentsjust the opposite.

"I say 'give up!'" Sincosaid.

Expounding on herlessons, Sinco said FUstudents have to learn togive up three bad habitsstarting this year -- laziness,mediocrity andextravagance.

In order to give uplaziness, FU students haveto be diligent and go theextra mile, she said.

On her second point,Sinco said students have togive up mediocrity.Oftentimes, she said, we tellourselves, "pwede na" whendoing something. Thereshould be no room for"pwede na" in FoundationUniversity, Sinco said as sheencouraged the students todo their best in their classwork and in their extra-curricular activities.

On extravagance, Sincosaid students have to learnto differentiate between theirneeds and wants. "If you seesomething and you want tobuy it, ask yourself, 'Do Ineed this?' if not, save yourmoney for a rainy day," she

Students from the Colegiode Sta. Catalina deAlejandria (COSCA) bestedthe other entries in the 4thRice is Life cookfest at theRobinson's Mall Dumaguetelast Sunday, held as part ofthe 61st foundinganniversary of FoundationUniversity.

The COSCA team joinedthe annual cookfest for thefirst time.

Gunther Sanin, founderand director of theDumaguete Academy ofCulinary Arts and owner ofCasablanca Restaurantalong the boulevard, notonly found the COSCA teamoutstanding but he alsoawarded a team member atuition scholarship worthP12,000.

The contestants fromSilliman UniversityNutrition & DieteticsDepartment placed second,and the Negros OrientalState University College ofTourism & HospitalityManagement, 3rd.

In the High Schoolcategory, the St. PaulUniversity High School wasawarded the championship.The Dumaguete ScienceHigh School, FoundationUniversity High School, andthe San Pedro Academy-Recoletos were chosen first,second and third runners-up, respectively.

UniversityRecorder

The Official Monthly Bulletin of Foundation University

Dr. Miciano Rd., Dumaguete CityTel. (35) 422-9167 • Fax. (35) 225-0617 • Website: www.FoundationU.com

Freshmen challenged

Strive forexcellence -- Sinco

LG Sinco Duathlona success

Cosca,SPUDrule

cookfests

CWD's1st 257 Martin Tindoc Bacong 22nd 246 Arjie Yba Bacong 23rd 250 Nick Sandoval Bacong 24th 243 Christian Sanchez Cantil-e 25th 244 Reynan Sanchez Cantil-e 2

3K, 9 years old & below Boys1st 508 Roniel Cañete FU 102nd 519 Jason Tindoc Bacong 73rd 515 Keivenn Banagodos FU-Footbal l54th 516 Paul Somoza FU-Football 25th 518 Dethier Ramirez Daro, Dgte. City 26th 517 Engvard Ramirez Daro, Dgte. City 27th 514 Dave Calidguid FU-Football 2

3K, 9 years old & below, girls1st 503 Cathyrine Pionela Batinguel 10

3K, 10-12 years old, boys1st 6879 Jay-R Pionela Batinguel 102nd 6863 John Michael Ramirez Daro, Dgte. City 73rd 7838 Art Villareal Bacong 54th 6891 Rollf Iven Cañete FU-Football 25th 7827 Rusell Meparanum Jr. Bacong 26th 6860 Elmer Tayko Junob 27th 6897 Jonathan Tundag FU-Football 28th 7829 Christian Peñalosa FU-Football 29th 6883 John Carlo Cariño FU-Football 210th 7831 Rhynard Patron FU-Football 2

3K, 10-12 years old, girls1st 7834 Charisse Pabuaya Bajumpandan 102nd 6881 Mikhaela Jumawan FU-Football 73rd 6882 Niña Jade Adique FU 54th 7835 Cindy Sandoval Bacong 2

5K, 13-16 years old, boys1st 241 Joel Hermosilla Jr. Bacong 102nd 207 Loreto Gaso Candau-ay 73rd 209 Erlincito Pionela Batinguel 54th 239 Lyndon Banaag FU-Football 25th 222 Rope Jun Salvoro FU-Football 26th 218 Chester Pis-an FU 27th 226 Mashashi Kyogoku FU-Football 28th 228 John Whel Gordoncillo FU-Football 29th 232 Nathan Jeanne Embelino FU-Football 210th 225 Ricky James Lacson FU-Football 2

5K, 13-16 years old, girls1st 216 Lijeaven Noay Canday-ong 102nd 237 Aizel Campilan Daro, Dgte. City 73rd 236 Sarah Jane Banagodos FU-Football 54th 211 Jovy Ann Cruzat FU 2

10.5K, 17-30 years old, men1st 1181 Joel Alcorin Escalante City 152nd 1436 Christian Calumba Cadawinonan, Dgte. City 103rd 1245 Niña Belleza Bajumpandan, Dgte. City 74th 1244 Jayson Villanueva Calabnugan, Sibulan 55th 1258 Cedrick Rosel FU-Athletics 56th 1426 Ryhar Canchela Zamboanguita 57th 1427 Nestor Ijan FU 58th 1196 Julius Amacio FU-Football 59th 1195 Jerry Villalon FU-Football 510th 1430 Julius Rodriguez FU 5

10.5K, 17-30 years old, women1st 1250 Mereeis Ramirez Daro, Dgte. City 15

2nd 1246 Iresh Belleza Bajumpandan, Dgte. City 103rd 1247 Leizl Ojerio Daro, Dgte. City 74th 1238 Marie Jane Ellyn Paez FU-Football 55th 1225 Luckylyn Lim FU-Football 56th 1234 Colleen Rose Ragay FU-Football 57th 1231 Quenny Dedalyn Sato FU-Football 58th 1232 Ann Leizl Elnar FU-Football 59th 1224 Nathalie Villegas FU-Football 510th 1223 Raquel Leah Jade Trozzi FU-Football 5

10.5K, 31-45 years old, men1st 724 Enecito Pionela Dgte. City 152nd 729 Russel Meparanum Dgte., City 103rd 728 Joseph Lipana Calindagan, Dgte. City 74th 719 Marlon Tanilon FU 5

Some duathlon contestantsfrom the Negros OrientalBikers' Associationimmortalize their winningmoment after the race.(Photo by Hersley Ven Casero)

Rank Race Name Address Prize# (rice in kgs)

FU Chairman Victor Vicente Sinco (rightmost) with FU President Mira D. Sinco and DeanCharlotte Cariño pose with the champions of the 4th Rice is Life Cookfest from the Colegiode Sta. Catalina de Alejandria. (Photo by Hersley Ven Casero)

advised.Sinco's message

complemented the keynoteaddress given earlier byDumaguete City Vice MayorAlan Gel Cordova, whocalled on the students tostrive for a balance in theirstudent life and personal life.

"I go by five main points--family, friends, health workand spirit," Cordova shared.He said it is important forpeople to live a healthy abalanced life through sports.

Cordova also noted adwindling work ethic

among today's youth, wheremore people now simply askfor things rather than workfor them. "I was taught notto accept charity--we weretaught to work for money."

He said only throughdiligence, hard work andindustry can one gain moralstature.

Cordova also said thateveryone must strive to be atpeace with God. "Soldierspray as well, and we praybefore and after combat,"Cordova, a former ScoutRanger, said.

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METROPOST

8

JULY 18 - JULY 24, 2010

Elementary school teacherSheila Estonilo picks up a pieceof chalk and prepares to writeon the blackboard in herclassroom when a ganglyhand goes up near the back of

the room. “Ma’am, may I goout, Ma’am?” a small voicebelonging to a skinny boypipes up. Sheila turns aroundand nods her head. As the boyrushes out of the classroom,Sheila sighs, knowing that itwill take some time before theboy comes back to class, as hasalways been the case when herstudents ask to be excused togo out of the room to answerthe call of nature.

Salag Elementary School,which stands along thehighway of the sprawlingSiaton town in NegrosOriental, a province in theCentral Visayas islands of thePhilippines, has long had aproblem with a lack ofadequate toilets. The schoolonly had two comfort rooms,one for the boys and one forthe girls, which are not enoughto accommodate a studentpopulation of more than 100.

As the waiting lines outsidethe comfort rooms grow, most(those who could not hold itanymore) run to nature - thenearest bushes - to literally,

answer the call of nature.Teacher Sheila says this is

why students take a long timeto get back to class. Once theystep outside the classroom todo their business, the students

tend to loiter and dilly-dallylong after they’re donedoing their business. “Wehave no control of wherethey will go after they askto leave the classroom. Thestudents often take theirtime before coming back tothe classroom, missing outon a lot of the day’s lesson,”she said.

But things changedwhen Unicef stepped in toaddress the school’sproblem. Teacher Sheilastill remembers the daywhen officials fromUnicef came to theirschool to deliver freegoods as well as the goodnews. “They gave usbooks and notepads forthe students and told us

that they will give uscomfort rooms. We were sohappy when we heard that,”she recalled.

After the dust settledfrom months of constructionwork, year 2009 saw allseven classrooms in SalagElementary School eachoutfitted with brand newand sparkling white toilets.Because of this, Salag’sstudents not only learnedproper sanitation andhygiene, but also improvedtheir participation in theirclasses.

“Now the students don’tneed to step out of theirclassrooms when they have togo to the toilet. Loiteringstudents during class hours isno longer a problem,”Principal Millard Mercedhappily said, as he pointed outhow helpful the toilets havebeen to their school.

The provision of toilets isone of the many projects carriedout by Unicef in elementaryschools belonging to disparityvillages in the province to

promote school sanitation andhygiene. One of therequirements cited in Unicef’sChild-Friendly School Systemis for the school to be “healthy”with adequate sanitation andtoilet facilities. To date, sixelementary schools in disparityvillages across the province arenow enjoying the sanitation,and privacy, provided by cleancomfort rooms, courtesy ofUnicef which supplied thetoilet facilities. The localgovernment units, in return,shouldered the cost ofconstruction.

But it was not a happyending yet at this point forSalag Elementary School. Afterthe toilets were completed, theschool faced another problem:

water has long been andcontinues to be a dilemma forthe school and the entirevillage. “Now that we have thetoilets from Unicef, we have todeal with the problem of lackof water. We don’t have a watersupply coming in from themain line,” lamented PrincipalMillard.

Although the village has awater source, the supply is notsufficient to address the water

Principal Millard Merced

Sheila Estonilo, one of fourOutstanding Primary SchoolTeachers in CPC-6 DisparityBarangays in Negros Oriental

Republic of the PhilippinesRegional Trial Court

7th Judicial RegionBranch 45 Bais City

In the matter of the petition for correctionof erroneous entries in the Petitioner’scertificate of live birth. Spl. Proc. No. J-10-20

Jojie E. Gonzales, Petitioner-versus-The Local Civil Registrar of Jimalalud,Negros Oriental and the Administrator andCivil Registrar General of the National StatisticsOffice, East Avenue, Quezon City, Manila, RespondentsX - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -/

ORDERBefore this court is a verified petition for correction of entries in the birth

record of Jojie E. Gonzales, filed through counsel Atty. Nicon J. Erames, datedApril 27, 2010, praying that after due notice, publication, and hearing, an Ordershall issue directing the Office of the Local Civil Registrar of Jimalalud NegrosOriental, and the Civil Registrar General of the National Statistics Office, EastAvenue, Quezon City, Manila to change the gender of the birth certificate of hereinPetitioner from female to MALE, and the name of his father from “AlejandroGonzales” to “ALECANDRO GONZALES”.

Finding the petition to be sufficient in form and substance, the court sets theinitial hearing thereof on Sept. 20, 2010 at 8:30 in the morning at the Session Hallof this Court at which date, time, and place, all interested persons may appearand show cause, if any, why the petition should not be granted.

Let this Order be published in a newspaper of general circulation in theProvince of Negros Oriental and its component cities once a week for at least threeconsecutive weeks, before the date of hearing.

Petitioner is hereby directed to furnish the Local Civil Registrar of Jimalalud,Negros Oriental of this Order with a copy of the petition and its annexes, and tothe Office of the Solicitor General with address at 134 Amorsolo St., LegaspiVillage, Makati City and show proof of service thereof.

So ordered. Bais City, Philippines, May 26, 2010.

Candelario V. GonzalezJudge

MetroPost July 11 • July 18 • July 25• 2010

Republic of the PhilippinesRegional Trial Court

7th Judicial RegionBranch 43 Tanjay City, Negros Oriental

Stationed at Dumaguete City

In the matter of correction of entriesparticularly the names Lea Releon Reyesto LEA RELLON, and Leonora AsenasReleon to LEONORA ACENAS RELLON,and correction of entries as to date andplace of marriage of parents from Sept. 15, 1983,Tanjay, Negros Oriental to NOT MARRIEDin the records of birth of Lea Rellon Reyes Sp. Proc. No. 372

Lea Rellon Reyes, Petitioner-versus-The Local Civil Registrar of Tanjay City,RespondentX - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - /

ORDERFiled before this Court is a verified petition for correction of entries in the

birth certificate of Lea Rellon Reyes, through counsel, praying that after due notice,publication, and hearing, an Order be issued changing the names Lea ReleonReyes to LEA RELLON, and Leonora Asenas Releon to LEONORA ACENASRELLON, and correction of entries as to date and place of marriage of parentsfrom Sept. 15, 1983 in Tanjay, Negros Oriental to NOT MARRIED in the recordsof birth of Lea Rellon Reyes.

Finding the Petition to be sufficient in form and substance, Petitioner is herebydirected to cause the publication of this Order in a newspaper of general circulationin the province of Negros Oriental and in the cities of Dumaguete, Tanjay, Bais,Canlaon, and Bayawan at least once a week for three consecutive weeks.

The Local Civil Registrar of Tanjay City, Negros Oriental, or any personhaving or claiming any interest under the entries whose corrections and changesare sought, may file within 15 days from notice of said Petition or from the lastpublication of said notice, an opposition thereto. Any interested persons mayappear before this Court at the scheduled hearing of this case on Sept. 30, 2010 at9:30 in the morning and show cause why the Petition should not be granted.

So ordered. Given this 4th day of July, 2010, Dumaguete city, Philippines.

Winston M. VillegasJudge

MetroPost July 18 • July 25 • August 1• 2010

The Negros OrientalUnion of Cooperatives(NEORUNCO) recently heldits oath-taking andinduction of officers for2010-2011 at the Neoruncobldg. in Purok Kalubihan inDaro.  Inducting officer wasJudge Antonio A. Alcantara,presiding judge of MTCTC-La Libertad andVallehermoso.

The newly inductedofficers are ChairpersonAtty. Gloria G. Futalan, Vice-Chairperson Dr. Norma B.Caluscusan, Secretary Fe V.Brilliantes.  Members of theBoard include:  LeovigildoA. Elmaco,  Nilo B. Lauron, Hipolito R. Quillan, Engr.Colombus A. Maitim, Engr.Preciosa T. Maturan,Leonita E. Callet, and Dr.Profetiza S. Lim. 

NEORUNCO envisionsitself to be a leadingCooperative Union inNegros Oriental.  It takes thelead in advocatingcooperativism in Negros

Futalan to headNeorunco

Oriental through aresponsive andstrengthened Union ofprimary cooperatives, toimprove the quality of life ofits client communities, byproviding trainings,livelihood assistance,consultancy services, micro-lending, and linkaging.

NEORUNCO is alsorepresented in differentorganizations and entitiesthat are active in thecooperative movement:Leonita Callet in theCooperative Union of thePhilippines, Engr. Maturanin the Regional CooperativeUnion, Dr. Tessie Lim in theProvincial CooperativeDevelopment Council andin the Cooperative Bank ofNegros Oriental, LeovigildoElmaco in the CityCoopertive DevelopmentCouncil,  Nilo B. Lauron inthe NegorNet, and Atty.Gloria G. Futalan in theRegional DevelopmentCouncil.

NEGOR ....FROM P. 3

with 17 percent followed byTayasan with 16.6 percent.

Bohol province’s BuenaVista ranked the lowest with15.5 percent.

The ranking’s figures arebased from the results of theOperation Timbang (weightmonitoring) conductedamong infants from zero to 71months old (5 years old) in thebarangays.

Mission stressed that thereis a dire need for localgovernment units in NegrosOriental to place more

needs of the village residents.But this did not stop PrincipalMillard who was determinednot to let the toilets go to waste.So he called for a meeting withthe teachers and together theycame up with an idea to solvethe lack of water in the toilets.However, the solution theythought of can only be donewith the support from theparents of the students.

So in the next Parent-Teacher Homeroom meeting,Principal Millard presented thesolution before the parents: foreach parent to contributemoney for the purchase ofcontainers of water in eachtoilet every school day. Theprincipal was not sure if hecould convince the parents.With Salag tagged as a disparityarea, life in the village is hardand water is scarce andexpensive.

But to the principal’ssurprise, the parents readilysaid yes. Now, with the parentschipping in the funds, eachclassroom’s toilet has up to fivegallons of water, enough toaddress the sanitation needs ofaround 60 students in eachclass. All this made possible bythe bayanihan spirit among theSalag villagers. Bayanihan is aFilipino term referring to aspirit of communal unity oreffort to attain a particularobjective. In this case, theobjective was to make sure thatUnicef’s efforts are not wastedand the students in Salag get touse the sanitation facilitiesprovided for them to the fullest.

Principal Millard is glad tosee how the community hasgotten involved in addressingthe water problem in theschool. “This would not havebeen possible had Unicef notprovided the toilets. I don’tthink the parents would haveagreed to shelling out themoney that quickly. They wereinspired by what Unicef hasdone for the school,” he saidwith a smile on his face.(Rachelle M. Nessia)

A Unicef success story

School sanitation sparks ‘Bayanihan’ spirit

FEATURE By: Rachelle M. Nessia

NEORUNCO members of the Board are (left to right) Dr. Profetiza S. Lim, Leovigildo Elmaco, Atty. Gloria Futalan, Dr.Norma B. Caluscusan, Engr. Preciosa T. Maturan, Leonita E. Callet, Engr. Colombus Maitim, Hipolito Quillan, Nilo Lauron

importance in theimplementation of nutrition-related programs in thebarangays.

She noted that there onlyabout 20 percent of the totalbarangays in the provincehave barangay nutritionscholars who areimplementing nutritionprograms at the grassrootslevel.

This is one of the factorsthat Mission said contributesto the province’s highmalnutrition prevalence rate.

“There is a lack of focus onnutrition programs at the

barangay level here and yetthis is where the battle is,” saidMission.

She said that based on thelaw, there should be at leastone barangay nutritionscholar in each village andthere may be more dependingon the population of thecommunity.

The provincialgovernment is currentlyshouldering the honorariumreceived by the barangaynutrition scholars.

Mission accedes that theprovincial government mightnot also afford to ensure that

all barangays here havebarangay nutrition scholars asit places a heavy strain on theProvince’s coffers. “Dili pudtnu-od ma-ahum sa probinsyakung tanan naa’y BNS kaybug-at sya sa panudlanan saProvince,” she said.

She cited that NegrosOriental can follow Bohol’slead in which the Boholprovincial government slowlyrelinquished the task offinancing the barangaynutrition scholars’honorarium to the localgovernment units. (PIA/Rachelle Nessia)