Southern Leyte Province News September 2011

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DENR completes planting of 82,500 seedlings in two Southern Leyte NGP sites

by. ES Gorne


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, September 30 (PIA) --- The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Provincial Office reported to have completed the planting of seedlings in two enrolled National Greening Program (NGP) sites in Southern Leyte. According to Rene Soria, the NGP Focal Person, said that Southern Leyte has enrolled 13 NGP sites so far. Soria added that the national high school students and people’s organizations filled the two NGP sites to total number of 82,500 seedlings planted and completed the same by the middle of September, this year. Soria said the people’s organization, Young Innovators for Sustainable Environment Association, which is based in Sitio Canlugok, Barangay Lunas together with the fourth year national high school students coming from the Bantid National High School (NHS), Baugo NHS and Dongon NHS, were all able to plant the whole of the eighty (80) hectares to a total of least 40,000 seedlings being planted in at least two Saturdays. He also reported that another enrolled NGP site in Barangay Kahupi-an, Sogod which covers 85 hectares has been planted with at least 42,500 seedlings already. Since the enrolled site is very far, the DENR has decided to forego with the participation of the children instead the tree planting were spearheaded by the barangay officials, the people’s organization which is the Kahupi-an Upland Farmer’s Association and the DepEd staff of the concerned national high schools. (PIA SoLeyte/esg)






Southern Leyte formally declared insurgent free on September 29

by. PIA Press Release


TACLOBAN CITY Leyte, September 27 (PIA) -- The Province of Southern Leyte will be formally declared as “Insurgent-Free” in simple rites that will be conducted at Ruperto Kangleon Function House in Maasin City on September 29. Captain Dranreb Canto of the Philippine Army’s 802nd Brigade based in Ormoc City, informed that the pronouncement will be formalized with the signing of the joint declaration by the 8th Infantry Division of the Philippines Army commander Major General Mario Chan and Southern Leyte Governor Damian Mercado. The 802nd Brigade CRS explained that a province is categorized as insurgency free when the threat posed by the CPP/NPA is successfully downgraded into a mere law and order problem. This is what happened to Southern Leyte and the other previously declared insurgency-free areas. After a thorough security situation assessment, when it is found that the local government can handle the situation, the AFP then hands over the lead-role to the LGU and assumes a support role to the PNP. On September 29, the guests will be welcomed officially by Vice Governor Miguel Maamo who is also the Vice Chairman of the Southern Leyte Provincial Peace and Order Council. This will be followed by the narrative on declaring Southern Leyte as insurgent free and the signing of the joint declaration. Among the special guests in this historical occasion are Leyte Governor Carlos Jericho L. Petillla who is the Chairperson of the Regional Peace and Order Council, and Lt. General Ralph Villanueva, commander, Central Command of the AFP who aside from Major General Mario Chan, commander of the 8th Infantry Division and Southern Leyte Governor Damian Mercado, will also deliver their respective messages. Being declared as insurgent free will boost Southern Leyte’s of becoming a tourism and investment destination as it will enhance confidence among investors and business companies to come to the province. (PIA 8)






1,468 TVET graduates got employed - TESDA –So Leyte report

by. ES Gorne


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept. 26 (PIA) -- The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) – Southern Leyte provincial office strengthened its programs and services in the province where at least 1,468 unemployed and underemployed Southern Leyteños who acquired skills got employment in domestic and abroad. TESDA – SoLeyte made sure that one of its program, Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) would be able to reach a greater number of Southern Leyteños even those residing in the remote barangays, Provincial Director Rolando Juanillo disclosed during the “Action Center” cable tv program Thursday at Senior Citizen’s Building, Maasin City. Juanillo said, of the total 1,468 TVET graduates who got employed last year, 461 came from the school –based TVET providers while the remaining 1,007 were the community-based TVET graduates, as well. He added that the one thousand seven (1,007) of them were monitored graduates from community-based trainings within the local government units in the province mostly through the active participation of the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) in close coordination with the municipalities. Juanillo also disclosed ten TVET providers in the province who contributed in the acquisition of skills were as follows: St. Joseph College, So. Leyte Business College, SJC VocTrac, The College of Maasin, Hinunangan Skills and Technological Center, St. James College of P. Burgos, SLSU-Bontoc, SLSU- Main Campus, STAC and STI-Maasin. He said, throughout the year, TESDA constinually determined whether its programs has helped in the employment of Southern Leyteños, where the agency has worked on monitoring monthly the employment status of TVET graduates in the country. He said the provincial office was able to accomplish only 81.37 percent of its employment monitoring target. However, the said data is not enough to conclude a low employment rate with the TVET sector, but could plainly illustrate a need to strengthen the monitoring and tracking of TVET graduates.### (PIA SoLeyte/esg)






Senator shares P 9.5 M PDAF for market, abbatoir development in 19 So. Leyte LGUs

by. Bong Pedalino


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept. 23 (PIA) -- This city and 18 municipalities of Southern Leyte province received an equal share of financial aid given by Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero, taken from his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF). Each recipients got P 500,000.00 assistance for the development of their respective public markets and abbatoirs, said District Engineer Carlos Veloso of the Department of Public Works and Highways-Southern Leyte Engineering District (DPWH-SLED), the implementing agency tasked to handle these projects. The Senator’s total financial assistance on this matter totaled P 9.5 Million, and the money was already available at the DPWH Regional Office, Veloso remarked during the weekly “Media Forum” live Wednesday at dyDM where he was the guest. With Veloso in the radio program were three division chiefs, namely, Engr. Allan Eway for maintenance, Engr. Vincent Sy for Planning, and Engr. Letty Olarte, the Office-In-Charge for Construction. These projects were scheduled for bidding and for proceeding to actual work within the last quarter of this year, according to Engr. Sy in a follow-up interview with the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) yesterday. Sy said that six towns out of the 18 were slated to sign a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Regional Office very soon for them to undertake the project by administration. As for Maasin City, the assistance was included in the relocation sites for market stalls at the Combado reclamation area, where construction was in progress, said Sy. (PIA-Southern Leyte/bong)






BIR clarifies action vs So Leyte's tax evading professionals

by. ES Gorne


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept. 22(PIA) -- Mr. Carlos Tambal, Assistant District Revenue District Officer in Southern Leyte clarified that the legal team of the BIR Regional Office in Eastern Visayas was the entity in charge of filing the case against the tax evader-professional from Southern Leyte. The action made by the BIR in Southern Leyte was to refer the findings to the legal team at the BIR Regional Office, Mr. Tambal said in a phone patch with Philippine Information Agency. Mr. Tambal said his agency’s action was not the direct filing of a tax evasion charge but was a referral to their legal team at the BIR Regional Office recommending the filing of such a charge. Mr. Tambal was referring to the reported case of tax evasion filed by BIR against a lawyer based in Sogod, Southern Leyte. Said tax evader has not been paying the annual income tax, no monthly filing of income tax, no issuance of receipts and is not even registered with the BIR. It may be recalled that taking a cue from the State of the Nation Address of President Benigno Aquino, the Bureau of Internal Revenue has vowed to go after doctors, lawyers, accountants and other professionals who are not paying the right income taxes. The BIR is now collecting pertinent data from various agencies such as the Professional Regulation Commission which exercises supervision over all professionals such as accountants, nurses, teachers, engineers, among others. Aside from running after big time tax evaders, the agency will also go after professionals who under declare their income. (PIA 8 Southern Leyte)

BIR – Southern Leyte files charges against tax evaders

by. ES Gorne


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept 21 (PIA) -- The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) – Southern Leyte field office recently filed a charge against professionals, who are evading payment of income taxes and still looking into the possibility of running after more professional tax evaders, this year. The case of a professional lawyer based in Sogod, this province, has been filed with charges for tax evasion and the case has been elevated to the legal division at the BIR regional office, Assistant Revenue District Officer Carlos Tambal of BIR- Southern Leyte disclosed to PIA – SoLeyte in a phone interview. According to Tambal, the alleged professional tax evader has not been paying the annual income tax, no monthly filing of income tax, no issuance of receipts and does not even have registration with their office. Tambal said that their office is closely monitoring another prospect tax evader - professional, whose details were not disclosed , who is reportedly committing tax evasion despite earnings derived out of the profession/career generated. He said that no less than their higher officials divulged that there are instances that the professional sector are the least to comply in the payment of income taxes. That sometimes minimum wage earners pay more income tax than their group. Meanwhile, Tambal reported that their office has been closely monitoring the compliance of the local government units to include the barangays in the implementation of withholding taxes for all their purchases, services, projects and salaries. Tambal said that they have been receiving reports that taxes were not withheld in most of the transactions at the barangay level. However, he said that these allegations will have to be verified by their office. However, Tambal added that since the barangays received their Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA), with or without transactions, the barangays need to file income tax returns to their office, otherwise, they will impose sanctions for non- compliance of tax laws.(PIA Southern Leyte/esg)

SoLeyte LGU releases P2.7 M for irrigation repair in Barangay Nava

by. Erna S. Gorne


SOUTHERN LEYTE, Sept. 19 (PIA) -- The provincial government of Southern Leyte led by Provincial Governor Damian G. Mercado turned-over P2.75 Million - worth irrigation repair project, Nava Communal Irrigation Improvement Project to Obong Farmer’s Association thru its President Ricardo T. Burlaza to boost the palay production in the province. Governor Damian G. Mercado turned-over in a simple ceremony last Sept 13, 2011at Tuburan, Hinunangan, So. Leyte the P2.75 M Nava Communal Irrigation Improvement Project undertaken by the Provincial Agricultural Services Office (PAgSO) to benefit at least 79 direct local rice farmers, PAgSO staff Feliciano Malaki, Jr reported to PIA Southern Leyte. The 79 members – beneficiary of the mentioned irrigation repair will cover 80 hectares rice fields which will soon betprovide better irrigation water distribution needed to boost palay production, Malaki said. Malaki added that Ricardo “Titing” Burlaza and fellow 79 members were very thankful for the concerted approach of all the concerned government officials who have collaborated towards the realization of their dream to improve the decade old facilities to alleviate their plight. Also present with Gov. Mercado were Mayor Romeo M. Gomez of Hinunangan LGU, the four (4) Sanguniang Panlalawigan members from the 2nd District (Hon. Junby Fernandez, Hon. Berting Lagumbay, Hon. Daisy Gamale and Hon. Almario), the barangay Captains of Nava and Tuburan, Hinunangan, he said. Gov. Mercado stressed to demonstrate under the “Aksyon, Solusyon, Inisyatibo” we are serious in improving the efficiency of support services to the farmers who are our partners in the thrust of “food security,” that is why “we included these in our Annual Investment Plan.” Malaki added. On the other hand, Hon. Junby Fernandez, the SP Committee Chairman on Agriculture expressed hope that after the turn-over, these will be managed and maintained by the recipient Obong Farmer-Members and could be passed thru their respective successors. In this way, we will be able to address similar needs or purposes in the future, Malaki said. While, OIC Provincial Agriculturist Marina E. Gador also said, “ with the cooperation of the farmers here, you have your Palayamanan Project here and we should also be able to contribute to the goal of increasing the present level of palay production per hectare. We should likewise work on producing vegetables and corn for local demand.” ### (PIA SoLeyte/esg)






After 20 years, forest crusaders reap rewards for conserving resources

by. MARK D. MERUEÑAS


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte - Loud and shrill, the roar of the chainsaw pierced through the calm of a plantation forest deep in the mountains near Southern Leyte's capital city of Maasin.

As the chainsaw operator sliced the trunk of an imposing mahogany tree, 47-year-old Florentino Saludo watched intently from a distance, his face a blank canvas.

It didn't take long before the towering tree began to collapse to the ground. As soon as the dust and leaves had settled, a wave of emotion finally overcame Saludo.

"That's what I always say. We took care of it for so long and then we see it just get cut like that," said Saludo in Filipino, briefly pausing before finishing his statement, "Masakit talaga, masakit."It took sometime before the forest farmers from Southern Leyte like Saludo could accept that this is the way of life in the forest, as proclaimed in postcards: a tree is born, a tree dies, the forest lives forever.

Saludo is the president of the Youth Innovators for Social and Environmental Development Association (YISEDA), a local people's organization in charge of a community-based forest management project that aims to protect remaining natural forests and lead reforestation efforts in Maasin.

One rainy day in September, Saludo took a group of visiting journalists from Manila to the project site, sharing not only their accomplishments in community-led sustainable forestry management but also the hurdles they overcame in the last two decades.

Cutting the mahogany tree was only one way of demonstrating the efficient harvesting practices observed in their forest domain. As part of their project commitment, members of YISEDA have decided they will no longer tolerate illegal logging, and instead harvest only those trees that they themselves have planted.

Interestingly, Saludo's father confesses that he was once an illegal logger, but he has since mended his ways.

Saludo himself had seen the growth of the mahogany tree that they just harvested since the time it was planted almost 20 years ago, in 1992, as part of reforestation efforts in the area at the time. That's why nobody could blame Saludo if he had developed an attachment to the tree.

YISEDA vice president Leo Vanzuela says it is not unusual for many of their members to become averse to logging after working so hard in preserving the forest. "Sinasabi ng iba, 'Ano puputulin na natin?' Sabi naman namin ay huwag na. Pinagpaguran natin iyan. Dugo't pawis natin iyan... Magkapatayan na huwag lang putulin iyan," he said.

At first, only a handful of villagers were willing to join the advocacy of YISEDA, which started its crusade on forest conservation as early as 1993. In the next 14 years, Saludo said they managed to protect the forest with no government funding. They patrolled the mountains at least twice a month, looking for signs of kaingin (slash-and-burn farming) or illegal logging.

In the early years, when community interest was not yet at an all-time high, Saludo emphasized the importance of becoming role models for other villagers. "Kung may commitment ang leaders, susunod ang members. We should not only be role models but also be transparent," he said.

Once everyone started joining the bandwagon, they soon realized that they were not only engaged in an environmental cause but would also reap economic rewards. There were livelihood benefits to be derived from protecting the forests.

Family affair

In recent years, YISEDA members were trained to cultivate seedlings from mature trees. With funding from the German aid agency Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the organization buys the seedlings and assigns members who will plant the young trees across 400 hectares of land at the San Francisco Nature's Park, a mountain range that covers five barangays in Maasin.

The males in the family take charge of the tedious and exhausting planting activities, while the housewives nurture the seedlings. Saludo, a father of one, said the children in their community are advised to focus on their studies, but some insist on joining their parents in planting trees.

"Kapag weekend at walang pasok, may mga bata talaga na sumasama sa amin. Talagang family affair na rin itong ginagawa namin," Saludo proudly said.

Apart from reforestation, YISEDA has also initiated agro-forestry activities to generate additional income. They plant fruit trees, vegetables such as eggplants and tomatoes, and root crops like gabi and kamote (sweet potato).

Cash income also comes from harvested trees, such as the 40-foot mahogany tree that Saludo's team had just cut down. Timber from the tree could fetch more than P5,000 once it is processed into market-sized planks used for construction, he said.

Under their CBFM agreement with the government, YISEDA can only cut trees from plantation areas measuring at least 30 centimeters in diameter. It usually takes around 20 years for one tree to reach this size, officials said. This is why it is only recently that YISEDA members have started reaping the benefits from the first trees that they planted in the early 1990s.

YISEDA has a timber-processing plant at the foot of the mountain, and has begun cutting the logs into smaller pieces. But until now, the wood planks sit quietly in their storage room.

Rogelio Abalus, one of the technical staff assisting YISEDA, explains the locals’ behavior. "Sila mismo, parang di pa sila ready ibenta ang mga kahoy namin. They are saying, 'Naaawa kami sa kahoy namin kaya we are holding these back,'" he recounted.

Saludo said there are plans to create added value for the raw timber by turning them into wooden furniture, which can then be sold at a higher price.

Cut in half

But the community does not have to wait for the town to evolve into a furniture-making center in order to reap the benefits from sustainable forest management.

This early, Saludo's cousin Ambrosio is thankful that he shifted to seedling production and agro-forestry for a living. The 47-year-old farmer had to borrow money for his appendectomy in January 2009, leaving him with a P40,000 debt.

Last year, he started selling seedlings for lauan, sagimsiman, mahogany, and balobo at four pesos each. He has earned almost P20,000 so far, enough to cut his debt by half. "Kung wala pa itong ganito, baka baon pa rin ako sa utang," Ambrosio told GMA News Online.

Apart from the income, local villagers have also begun to appreciate the impact of forest conservation as an adaptation tool in the current wave of climate change. By preserving their abundant forests, the mountains not only remain intact and free from any danger of landslides, but also serve as a steady conduit of rainwater both for the villagers' consumption and also for irrigating their tree plantations.

As an added bonus or, as GIZ officials like Abalus refer to it, the "icing on the cake," these green communities contribute in a huge way to easing the greenhouse effect - that warms the planet - through a global strategy known as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation-plus (REDD+).

Abalus explains that every tree preserved will not only slash the amount of carbon dioxide - a key factor in turning the earth into a huge greenhouse - in the air because of the absorption process of vegetation, but it will also keep the tree's carbon component locked in. Carbon dioxide is released into the air when trees are burned, like what happens in large-scale slash and burn farming.

Ricardo Tomo, provincial director of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, said Southern Leyte was a perfect pilot area for the GIZ's project because the local government has been enforcing a logging ban since the 1970s, way before President Benigno Aquino III issued Executive Order 23 in February this year that imposed a moratorium on logging in natural and residual forests.

However, he admitted that there are still isolated cases when villagers try to sneak logs out of the island province.

Just the same, due to its trailblazing efforts, President Aquino awarded YISEDA as the best people's organization in Southern Leyte in 2010. - Photos by Joe Galvez and Mark Merueñas/YA, GMA News






297 Southern Leyte blood donors turnout in less than 2 months

by. ES Gorne


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept. 16 (PIA) - The Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) – Southern Leyte Chapter was overwhelmed with the heavy turnout of blood donors in less than two months with the total collections of 297 blood bags in 450 cubic centimeters, so far. “The provincial chapter has in possession of 297 blood bags donated by the same number of blood donors at one time that never happened before , “ PNRC Chapter Administrator Noli Casas disclosed during the cable TV program, “Action Center” at the Senior Citizen’s building in Maasin City. The same program is also simultaneously broadcasted over DySL Radyo ng Bayan – Sogod. Casas said that some 60 blood bags of 450 cubic centimeters were shared to Cebu City Red Cross when the latter came to know of the excess stocks blood in Southern Leyte blood bank. He was impressed with the active participation of several barangays, military reserves, local government units, religious groups, police officers, non-government organizations and students who voluntarily gave their blood to the local Red Cross chapter. He further said that blood donation program is an integral component in the disaster preparedness. “That it is very important that people’s level of awareness in blood donation be understood by the masses to be responsive at times of emergencies ,” he added. He also discussed that once a member of an organization becomes a donor, that entitles all of the members of the same organization to include the close relatives of the member of the organization concerned to avail the deposited blood without any replacement. Casas is hopeful that the trend of volunteerism among the blood donors in the province will be sustained for the remaining months of the year. Once in every quarter, the same person can be extracted with blood if he is physically strong and healthy.### ( PIA SoLeyte/esg)






Leyte villagers bring forests back to life

by. JOE GALVEZ, GMA NEWS


In a small village in Southern Leyte, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is assisting farmers in managing a long term Community Based Forest Management (CBFM) project that aims to reforest denuded mountains and address climate change concerns at the same time.

The Young Innovator for Social and Environmental Development Association (Yisedai) led by its president, Florentino Saludo, are continuously planting more trees in addition to more than 400,000 seedlings planted so far at the San Francisco Natural Park.

Through the years, Yisedai has grown from a handful of members with no modern implements except for a few machetes and spades, to a thriving organization that now owns a truck and a mini-sawmill where they process harvested timber.

With assistance from DENR and funding from the German Development Cooperation’s Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the group was able to purchase several German-made Stihl chainsaws and protective gear. Each member also gets P150 a day to plant at least 300 seedlings of various tree species.

The reforestation area is one of the pilot sites for the REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) project of the DENR and GIZ, which invited several journalists from Manila last Sept. 8-10 to take a look at the farmers’ efforts. - YA, GMA News






Climbing the 'Chocolate Hills' of Southern Leyte

by. MARK D. MERUEÑAS


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte - Thanks to its one-of-a-kind and perfectly dome-shaped "Chocolate Hills," the Visayan island province of Bohol has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Philippines.

But who knew these sun-kissed mounds have a counterpart northeast of Bohol, in the neighboring Leyte island?

The "Chocolate Hills" of Southern Leyte form part of the Nacolod Mountain Range, but have been locally baptized the "San Francisco Nature's Park," after the town's patron saint. More appropriately called mountains, their peaks rise above the sea level at exactly 580 meters, easily dwarfing Bohol's 30- to 50-meter hills, and cover at least five barangays (villages).

While the Chocolate Hills can be viewed from the summit of one hill and easily reached by car through a winding paved road, the Southern Leyte version is accessible only on foot for now. This makes the steep climb more challenging and rewarding at the same time.

The mountain range is best seen from a wooden view deck built on one of the peaks last February by a local village organization. Members of the group take turns in watching over the mountain range, looking for signs of illegal logging and slash-and-burn activities (kaingin) that have scraped the slopes bare.

Thanks to the local forest crusaders, some 400 hectares of denuded land were recently replanted with seedlings through the help of the German aid agency Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). The mountains have become alive again with a wide variety of native and exotic seedlings including acacia mangium, lauan, mahogany, sagimsiman, yakal, mayapis, and bagtikan.

These new patches of forestland are among those classified by the government as community-based forest management areas, which local villagers in province have volunteered to protect. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources provides technical assistance, either by helping replant new seedlings in deforested areas or by maintaining natural forests that have remained untouched.

Reaching the summit

If you are the adventurous and fearless type of mountain climber, you can reach the watch tower by taking an hour-long and steep (almost 90-degree) ascent on one side of the mountain. But if you wish to get to the top quicker and easier, you can take a shorter (about 30 minutes of climbing) and less steep route on the other side.

Unfortunately for us, we did it the hard way, taking the steeper ascent and going down the shorter route. I don't know if our travel guides did that on purpose, as we did not learn about the easier route until we were on our way down, but no matter. We still enjoyed the climb and I wouldn't have done it any other way.

Once at the summit, there's a 360-degree view of picturesque and cone-shaped mountains, with the Sogod Bay greeting you northeast of the watch tower. With clouds hugging their peaks, the breath-taking mountains are beautifully crowned with perfectly aligned rows of seedlings. Soon, these will become full grown trees, bringing back the lush forest cover that some of the mountains have lost.

One mountain in particular will surely catch the attention of every mountain climber. If Laguna's Mount Makiling is renowned for its contour, which is similar to that of a reclining woman, this particular mountain is characterized by a cone-shape mound with a small projection or bump at the peak that resembles a woman's bosom. Villagers have aptly named it the "Sexy Mountain."

Canopy walk

Southern Leyte's "Chocolate Hills" are only a few of the destinations that the province is offering in a recent bid to draw in tourists and boost its agro- and eco-tourism.

For instance, the local government in the fourth-class coastal town of Silago - 172 kilometers northeast of the provincial capital of Maasin City and only two hours away from the Tacloban Airport - is planning to transform 39 hectares of its vast forest land area of more than 10,000 hectares into a "Canopy Walkway Park."

"We want our town to become a future site of eco-tourism with climate resilient communities in a sustainable environment," Silago mayor Manuel Labrador Sr. tells a group of visiting journalists from Manila. The town, which is home to almost 13,000 people, rely heavily on coconut and rice farming for a living.

An hour's walk from the highway leads trekkers into the deep end of its natural forest where the Tres Marias Falls, a series of three waterfalls along the length of a river, is found.

Taking a refreshing dip in the cool waters of the river would have been perfect, especially after emerging from an hour-long hike in the woods. Sadly, we failed to bring extra clothes so we just ended up snapping photographs of the wonderful scenery.

My photo editor at GMA News Online, Joe Galvez, however, got a feel of the frigid waters when he lost his footing on one of the moss-covered rocks. Thank God only his legs got soaked and his precious camera, which was hanging from his neck, was left unscathed.

More daring tourists could also travel by boat to a huge outcrop in the waters off the shores of Silago town called the Pelada Rock, a well-known snake and bird sanctuary.

In the town proper, the Silago government has also put on public display the gigantic skeleton of a 26-foot sperm whale that was washed ashore almost a decade ago.

It's all these wonders and more that make the long, sometimes bumpy but fun nevertheless, trip to the deepest corners of Silago's forests and Maasin's mountain tops worth all the aching muscles. - Photos by Joe Galvez and Mark Merueñas/YA, GMA News





So Leyte solon to DOST: Demonstrate anti-dengue traps

by. Bong Pedalino


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept. 12 (PIA) -- Representative Roger Mercado on Saturday requested the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) provincial office through its staff, Daphne Santiago, to hold video showing and actual demonstration on how the DOST’s ovicidal trap will be used in households as a preventive measure against dengue. Mercado made the request during a block-time radio program “Serbisyo Publiko” live at dyDM with host Digo Credo and Santiago as guest. He said that during the anti-dengue clean-up drive last Friday at barangay Asuncion, the second in a series which the lone Southern Leyteno lawmaker initiated, DOST was ready to show and teach people about the mosquito trap in the brief ceremonies, but since it was still past 1 pm and the Asuncion gym was open, the showing was cancelled as it cannot be clearly seen in broad daylight. This week, the DOST was urged to catch up by doing a film showing in the evening in the two barangays where the cleanliness campaign was already undertaken, at barangays Combado and Asuncion, and be with the cleaning warriors in the next rounds of the activity so by the evening of that day the video showing and actual demonstration can be made immediately, Cong. Mercado appealed. Santiago said her office is very much willing to support the advocacy of Cong. Mercado in his efforts to spare the city and province from the dengue outbreak by holding a weekly volunteer clean-up drive in the city’s central barangays for a start, spreading later on to other barangays and other towns of the province. Last Friday’s clean-up activity at barangay Asuncion saw Cong. Mercado leading the pack of provincial and city hall employees numbering over a thousand let open a stagnant water choked by blocking sands with the help of a payloader, picking thrash and debris in the beach, and sweeping the highways and every nook and corner around the barangay. This coming Friday’s next stop will be barangay Abgao, the home barangay of the Mercado’s, it was learned. Santiago, who brought a sample of the DOST-invented mosquito trap, explained that any housewife can easily operate the ovitrap, which looks like a middle-sized black glass with a cardboard stick look-alike dipped in halfway water. The water will be diluted with a packaged pellet, stirred, then placed in specific points inside or just outside the house where mosquitoes are known to converge. After one week, the eggs of the mosquitoes will be trapped in the rugged cardboard surface, unable to propagate. The water will be replaced, another pellet added, and the contraption will be used again for another one week. Asked if the concoction would not be dangerous for babies or house pets to play around, Santiago said the trap was loaded with chemical that’s why it should be placed in inaccessible areas around the house to spare it from sight of small children and animals to avoid unexpected complications. (PIA-Southern Leyte/bong)





Cebuano news: So. Leyte DENR works double time to attain 2011 NGP target

by. Bong Pedalino


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept. 7 (PIA) -- The provincial office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is working double time to reach its target of reforesting 1,800 hectares of timberland areas in the province this year, according to Ricardo Tomol, Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer (PENRO). In a casual chat with the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) on the sidelines of a meeting held at Rep. Roger Mercado’s office Monday, PENRO Tomol said his office will be doing a double time in coordination with various government agencies as they are expected to cover all bases for the remaining months of the year. In July, Cong. Mercado led the launching of the National Greening Program (NGP) in the province, during which the sites to be planted, also called NGP sites, were duly identified, with the challenge that these areas should be planted based on the timeline specified under the nationwide reforestation program. Last month, the DENR coverage under CENRO-Maasin were able to plant 20 hectares of the NGP site at barangay Lonoy with the help of high school students, while at CENRO-San Juan, some 4o hectares were already accomplished. CENRO refers to Community Environment and Natural Resources Office, a subdivision of the provincial DENR, with CENRO-Maasin comprising the areas from Maasin to Sogod, while CENRO-San Juan comprising the rest of the towns in the pacific and Panaon island, including Libagon. For the NGP, CENRO-Maasin was assigned 800 hectares, and CENRO-San Juan, 1,000 hectares, Tomol said. He told the heads of offices present during the meeting at Congressman’s office that he will soon provide them with their respective schedules for the NGP-led tree-planting activity, as it was already understood that under NGP every employee was committed to plant ten trees per year until 2016. For the two CENROs, the strategy now would be to plant more than 300 hundred hectares per month until December to accomplish the goal of 1,800 hectares, Tomol said. Aside from closely coordinating with the Department of Education (DepEd), Tomol said he will also go around to the various local government units in the province and the different People’s Organizations to step up the pace. The NGP will go on until 2016, with an expected increase in hectare coverage every year, it was learned. The national target was to plant 1.5 billion tree and fruit-tree seedlings in 1.5 million hectares. Whereas the reforestation programs in the past 25 years covered only some 200 hectares, the NGP, in a matter of six years raised it almost a thousand times, Tomol intimated. The other difference is that while past reforestation programs relied only on human monitoring, the NGP uses satellite technology in tracking planted sites, so everything has to be feed into the computer, the internet, Tomol added. (PIA-Southern Leyte/bong)







GSIS VP graces Members Forum and Pre-retirement counseling in So Leyte

by. ES Gorne


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept. 6 (PIA) -- The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) Regional Office 8 in a series of Members Forum and Pre-retirement counselling conducted in its last leg throughout Eastern Visayas region last Friday was graced by Vice President (VP) Salvacion Mate for SOLVI Operations in Southern Leyte. According to VP Mate the said GSIS initiated dialogue with stakeholders and pensioners nationwide hopes to solicit inputs on how they can best run the state insurance working with act, courage on different issues. Together with GSIS Regional Manager Vilma Fuentes, VP Mate held separate dialogues for members who are planning to retire on pre-retirement counseling in the morning while a member’s forum with the active members of the state insurance in the afternoon. VP Mate disclose that GSIS will only provide the funding for the housing programs through the Pag-Ibig Fund as GSIS extended housing loans restructuring and condonation programs. Regional Manager Fuentes informed the active members on its bundles of benefits given away by GSIS such scholarship programs to include STI partnership in education, the GSIS and Pfizer partnership health programs where members can avail up to 55 percent discounts on selected Pfizer medicines like Norvasc, Celebrex, Lipitor, Lyric and Viagra. According to Fuentes, the SOMA for each of the GSIS members can now be requested on website, www.gsis.gov.ph. For further information on the details of GSIS concerns, Manager Fuentes provided the following contact numbers: Regional Manager Vilma Fuentes – 09085686198/ 0915823811/ mvlfuentes@gsis.gov.ph; Igmidio “Junjie” Ponay, Jr – 09175729705/ ifponay@gsis.gov.ph; Juanita L. Echevarria – 09494014973. While, GSIS delivered two more GSIS Wireless Automated Processing System or G-W@PS, one unit placed at the Southern Leyte Provincial Capitol and the other one at the Maasin City Hall lobbies and became functional in time with the visit of VP Mate and Regional Manager Fuentes last week. Presently, there are three (3) GW@PS kiosks located in various strategic locations throughout the province. (PIA SoLeyte/esg)






So Leyte, Maasin City get 2 news GSIS kiosks

by. ES Gorne


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, September 5 (PIA) -- To provide comfort and easier access for government employees both in Southern Leyte Provincial Government and the Maasin City government to avail of the services of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), two new kiosks were turned –over last Friday at respective offices. Known as GSIS Wireless Automated Processing System or G-W@PS, members can readily apply for loans, check membership status and loan accounts through the G-W@PS kiosk. Pensioners can also renew their active status through the kiosk. GSIS Regional Manager Vilma Fuentes said “ The automated system can process the GSIS members loan applications without any documentary requirement,” during the forum conducted by GSIS regional office attended by the active members in the afternoon at DPWH Conference Hall last Friday throughout the province. The G-W@PS was developed in the GSIS and makes use of a combination of world-class technologies, such as radio frequency identification, biometrics, and virtual private network to come up with a secure system that can perform processing remotely in a paperless manner. The G-W@PS kiosk resembles an automated teller machine (ATM) that has a touch screen monitor. Unlike the ATM, however, the GW@PS kiosk does not dispense money. Presently, there are three (3) GW@PS kiosks located in various strategic locations throughout the province. In the morning, the GSIS team headed by Vice President Salvacion P. Mate for the SOLVI Operations also met with the pre-retirement employees for counselling. ### ( PIA SoLeyte/ esg)






First blood-letting at PIA-So. Leyte nets 12 bags

by. Bong Pedalino


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte, Sept. 4 (PIA) -- At the end of the day, the provincial chapter of the Red Cross here went home with 12 bags of fresh blood donated by donors in a blood-letting activity held at the provincial office of the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) Friday, this city. The activity represented a 50% increase from the expected donors of eight individuals. Among those who gave blood were three employees from the neighboring office of City Agriculture, five Policemen from the City Police Station, a walk-in student from Maasin City College (MCC), an employee from the city local government unit, Angie Book, correspondent of the local weekly Southern Leyte Times (SLT) and this writer. The city’s Police elements were informed on the spot, yet P/Supt. Hector Enage, the city’s police chief, responded immediately, sending his men and documenting the process as part of their celebration of Crime Prevention Week, it was learned. The blood-letting began 9 in the morning and ended at 3 in the afternoon. Actually, more than ten other prospective donors who were willing to donate blood were also denied for various reasons by the attending medical officers of the Red Cross. Some had high blood, asthma, and recent tooth extractions. The successful conduct of the activity was attended and supervised by Dr. Nadine Sy of the Salvacion Oppus Yniguez Memorial Provincial Hospital, along with her two nurses. Infocen Manager Gorne said the next round of the same event Friday next week will be held at the spacious function hall of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), although this has yet to be coordinated with District Engineer Carlos Veloso. (PIA-Southern Leyte/bong)






Feature: PIA-So. Leyte office becomes 'blood-letting clinic'

by. Bong Pedalino


The Southern Leyte office of the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) was transformed into a channel for blood donors to shed a fraction of the life-giving liquid so that others may live. On short notice, what was normally a routine office appearance was altered to become an eerie sight of three lined cots for the blood-letting process, the tables and chairs neatly arranged to resemble a functional albeit improvised medical facility. In a little while, as doctors and nurses from the Salvacion Oppus Yniguez Memorial Provincial Hospital (SOYMPH), along with volunteers from the local Red Cross arrive, the smell of alcohol together with the presence of other paraphernalia such as the one for measuring blood pressure, the office has transformed into PIA Clinic, at least for today. The activity was in line with the instruction from PIA Director-General Jose Fabia for the field offices to coordinate in their respective localities with the media, private groups, non-government organizations, health personnel, and local government units to conduct a simultaneous blood-letting every Friday until the need persists, so the collected blood be given to areas in other parts of the country that are still lingering from the dengue outbreak. On deck at the “PIA-So. Leyte Clinic” today to lay down in the prepared cots are at least eight volunteer blood donors whom Infocen Manager Erna Gorne approached to share their precious blood, including employees from the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) and the Office of the City Agriculture Services (OCAS), PIA’s neighbor offices. Jani Arnaiz, President of the local media group Associated Media of Southern Leyte (AMSL) who is also a correspondent of the Philippine Daily Inquirer, had indicated also to give blood -- his very first attempt if ever this try would materialize. Marichu Tan, the lone personnel of the Office of Civil Defense here, also listed her name in the donors’ list.(PIA-Southern Leyte/bong)






Southern Leyte media to join PIA in blood letting activities

by. R.G. Cadavos


MAASIN CITY, Southern Leyte Sep 1 (PIA) – The Associated Media of Southern Leyte will join the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) in the blood letting activities to help dengue-stricken areas throughout the country to prevent the spread of virus. In a media forum aired regularly at radio station DyDM every Wednesday, media practitioners who faciliated the radio program such as the PIA, DyDM reporters, among other private correspondents here committed to join the blood donation activities as directed by PIA Director General Atty. Jose Fabia through Region 8 Director Olive P. Tiu . The AMSL has been regularly supporting in every program the PIA initiated. During the forum, Southern Leyte Provincial Information Center Manager Erna Gorne disclosed in a phone patch interview that “ PIA is asking your support and hopeful that the media will also be one of the donors of the voluntary blood donation.” The PIA is now coordinating with the Philippine National Red Cross- Southern Leyte Chapter to facilitate the blood letting activity, “we are suggesting to the PNRC that it will be held at the PIA Office at Barangay Combado here,” she added. On the other hand, one of the hosts, Ramon Buyser of DyDM, a Kagawad of Barangay Mambajao disclosed that “Barangay officials here initiated already the blood donation every 4 months, held at the barangay hall and conducted by the Red Cross,” adding that “the activity started last year yet, he added. The blood letting activity was in response to a memorandum from Atty. Fabia “to conduct a voluntary blood donation day as dengue cases in many parts of the country is increasing.” The bloodletting activity in Eastern Visayas started last August 26, Friday at the PIA 8 Regional Office in coordination with the AGIO-8, KBP Eastern Visayas, REAL and the Philippine National Red Cross Leyte Chapter to mobilize people in the blood letting activity. (rgc/PIA-SoLeyte)

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