Albay News April 2018

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Albay - Archived News
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Seal of the Province of Albay
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Location of Albay within the Philippines
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Provincial Capitol Building of Albay, in Legazpi City

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Wars of ancient history were about possessions, territory, power, control, family, betrayal, lover's quarrel, politics and sometimes religion.

But we are in the Modern era and supposedly more educated and enlightened .

Think about this. Don't just brush off these questions.

  • Why is RELIGION still involved in WARS? Isn't religion supposed to be about PEACE?
  • Ask yourself; What religion always campaign to have its religious laws be accepted as government laws, always involved in wars and consistently causing WARS, yet insists that it's a religion of peace?

WHY??

There are only two kinds of people who teach tolerance:
  1. The Bullies. They want you to tolerate them so they can continue to maliciously deprive you. Do not believe these bullies teaching tolerance, saying that it’s the path to prevent hatred and prejudice.
  2. The victims who are waiting for the right moment to retaliate. They can’t win yet, so they tolerate.

STI builds Legazpi school costing P391 M

By James A. Loyola

STI Education Services Group, Inc. (STI ESG) has started the construction of STI Academic Center Legazpi where it will invest P391 million for top-of-the-line facilities and equipment.

“In our pursuit of academic excellence, we constantly upgrade our campuses and facilities to deliver our promise to make real life education accessible for the Filipino youth across the country,” said STI ESG President Peter K. Fernandez.

Located on a 4,149 square-meter property at Rizal St., Cabangan East, Legazpi City, the six-story school building will house air-conditioned classrooms with flat screen TVs, student activity centers with Internet connection, industry-grade simulation laboratories, audio-visual room, kitchen facilities, cafeteria, and a covered multipurpose gymnasium among others.

Fernandez noted that the soon-to-rise STI Academic Center is strategically positioned to accommodate the many potential students in the highly urbanized and densely populated city.

Expected to be completed in June 2019, the STI Academic Center Legazpi can accommodate up to 4,000 senior high school and college students.

It will offer in-demand courses and relevant programs in Information & Communications Technology, Business & Management, Hospitality Management, Tourism Management, Engineering, and Senior High School.

For the last eight years, 11 new school facilities were constructed for existing wholly-owned schools.

Starting April 2017, STI ESG began the construction of six more school buildings as part of its expansion program. These six soon-to-rise academic centers are located in Pasay-EDSA, Lipa, Tanauan, Sta. Mesa, San Jose del Monte in Bulacan, and Davao.

STI ESG decided to shift its focus to an organic expansion instead of a geographical expansion. “We are not opening new campuses, instead we are building better school facilities for our existing schools so that they can continue to deliver quality education in improved spaces,” Fernandez explained.

Hot lumber worth P4M seized in 3 Albay hardware shops

By Michael B. Jaucian (Correspondent, /kga, Inquirer Southern Luzon)

TABACO CITY – A composite team of National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) operatives and Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) personnel confiscated thousands of pieces of undocumented and illegally cut lumber from various hardware stores here valued at around P4 million, Police said on Friday.

Authorities raided the three establishments located in Barangays (village) San Ramon, Bonbon, and Pawa on Thursday morning and found piles of cut lumbers of mostly red and white lawaan species.

Lawyer Eric Czar Nuqui, team leader of NBI’s central office, said the establishments were put under surveillance for several months.

Thousands of pieces of illegally cut lumber were seized by authorities in three hardware stores in Albay. The hot lumbers were believed to be around P4 million. Contributed photo

Six persons – owners of the raided establishments – were invited for questioning by the NBI while charges for violation of Presidential Decree 705 (Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines) were being prepared against them.

Legazpi strengthens position as MICE destination

By Emmanuel Solis and Connie Calipay (PNA)

LEGAZPI CITY -- The local government’s efforts for boosting the economy and tourism-related developments have made the city one of the preferred destinations for Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) across the country.

"The recognition by the DOT (Department of Tourism) was a luminous symbol for Legazpi anchored on our being highly capable now of hosting and properly handling friendly visitors from any part of the world and other similar gatherings by different local as well as national and international giant organizations," Legazpi City Mayor Noel Rosal said on Tuesday.

Rosal said the increased influx of investments and massive urban development attract more visitors to hold events and activities here.

He added the city has been also officially named as “most business-friendly, “most competitive” and now one of the most "livable cities" in the country.

The mayor further said all the participants and visitors of the events and activities conducted in this city were all protected by police officers and personnel of the Public Safety Office (PSO) to ensure their safety and secure them from any form of criminalities.

The policemen and the Public Safety Office (PSO) in Legazpi City were also tasked to assist the delegates and respond to the emergency calls like traffic accidents and any form of untoward incidents that may take place, he added.

The city chief executive thus urged big organizations to hold their conferences here as part of the promotion of its tourist destinations.

Rosal said participants of the events held in the city are increasing tourist arrivals, contributing to the generated revenues of the local government that directly benefits local communities.

Data gathered from the City Tourism Office showed that Legazpi recorded total tourist arrivals of 1,275,710 in 2017 from 1,199,291 the previous year. According to DOT, Legazpi City ranked fifth as MICE destination in the country in 2016.

Top one MICE destination was Metro Manila, followed by South Cotabato, Cebu and Zambales.

Legazpi’s P1-B flood control fund set for release this year

By Emmanuel Solis (PNA)

LEGAZPI CITY -- The national government is set to release PHP1 billion to finance the rehabilitation and improvement of flood control structures in Albay district before the year ends.

The Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) 2nd Engineering District will implement the project, which is designed to accommodate the great volume of water discharge that floods the pavement during heavy rains, Mayor Noel Rosal said Tuesday.

"The street flooding in Albay district is a perennial problem during rainy season as huge volumes of floodwaters from the upper portion of the southern villages pass through and overflow its waterways going to the Albay gulf,” Rosal said.

He said his administration is doing everything possible to address the district’s flooding problem as it troubles commuters and motorists, and paralyzes business transactions at the city’s central business center.

The mayor said Legazpi has an urban drainage system with three pumping stations meant to address the flooding problem.

The PHP2.1-billion urban drainage system was considered as a mega flood control project implemented by the DPWH.

However, Rosal said, the city experienced flooding anew on Dec. 29 last year and last Jan. 3, as major river channels were clogged with huge volumes of waste dumped by residents near the rivers.

Roro vessel runs aground in marine protected area in Albay

By Rhaydz Barcia (PNA)

LEGAZPI CITY---A roll-on-roll-off (Ro-ro) vessel, owned by Santa Clara Shipping Company, ran aground a marine protected area some 1.2 kilometers off the waters of Barangay Rawis, Libon town on Tuesday here.

Nonie Enolva, spokesperson of Bureau of Fisheries Aquatic Resources (BFAR) regional office, said that "MV Jack Daniel" departed the Port of Pantao, Libon, town after its regular maintenance.

But the vessel ran aground in the marine protected area of Barangay Rawis in Libon after underestimating a maneuvering process.

Enolva said they cannot determine yet the extent of damage.

“We cannot determine yet the valuation of damage,” she said, adding that the BFAR dive team will conduct damage assessment on corals on Thursday, April 26.

The Roro vessel, with 795 gross tons and 24 crew, is plying Pioduran to Masbate and was undergoing regular maintenance in Pantao port.

Extraction will be made during hightide later Tuesday afternoon.

Fire hits Albay town market

By Ma. April Mier, Rey Anthony Ostria (/lb, Inquirer Southern Luzon)

LEGAZPI CITY – A fire destroyed part of the public market of Polangui town in Albay noontime Tuesday.

The fire, which started at 12:05 p.m., burned less than a half of the market, according to Chief Insp. Edgar Azotea, Polangui police chief.

An initial report said the fire started from the ceiling and spread instantly, damaging some goods and market stalls, Azotea said.

Senior Fire Officer 2 Francis Salcedo Jr., ground commander from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), said they were still conducting investigation on the origin of the fire.

But he said that based on their interviews with the vendors, the fire may have started from faulty wiring.

Before the fire, the electricity in the town was “on and off” and may have caused the thin wires to heat up and set ablaze, Salcedo said.

“Thin wires may start sparks. In the mezzanine, the wires there are very thin and the rats may have nibbled through the insulators. The electricity may have triggered the fire,” Salcedo said.

Fire trucks from Guinobatan, Camalig, Ligao City, and Chinese volunteers from Legazpi City were able to extinguish the fire around 1:30 p.m.

One person was hurt in the incident, Salcedo said.

He said that when he talked to Vice Mayor Herbert Borja, they agreed that the Sangguniang Bayan must recommend rewiring in the entire market.

Salcedo added that they recommended the removal of light construction materials from the market building.

“Some of the materials in the market are only coco lumber and plywood, which are prone to fire,” Salcedo said. He added that in his 12 years in BFP Polangui, this was the first time that the market caught fire.

Free college tuition pioneer Albay to enrol over 30K students in 2018

By Johnny C. Nunez (PNA)

DARAGA, Albay -- Albay province, which pioneered the free college tuition scheme in the country, is seen to gain further from a law that gives similar benefits to Filipino students nationwide--the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act of 2017.

As the national government starts to implement the law this school year, the Albay government expects to have over 30,000 students for its first batch of enrollees under the national program.

Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda, the principal author of the new law under Republic Act 10931, said Monday that about 17,000 of the enrollees in Albay for this coming school year would enter state universities and colleges (SUCs) and 12,000 in local universities and colleges (LUCs).

Salceda noted that while Albay used to be the only province in the country enjoying free college education, all Philippine state colleges and universities now across the archipelago would start admitting enrollees under the free college tuition program this coming school year.

Under the new law, 112 SUCs and 78 LUCs have so far been accredited by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), while TESDA has enlisted about 122 technical vocational institutions nationwide.

Salceda first introduced the free college tuition concept under his Universal Access to College Education program in Albay, where he was provincial governor for nine years until 2016.

The provincial program, he said, had helped 88,888 students complete their studies and served as the “inclusive tool and key to Albay’s poverty reduction from 41 percent in 2007 to 17.1 percent in 2015.”

As Albay representative, Salceda filed HB 2771 last year, based on “lessons learned” from his Albay program, which was designed to help “solve the continuing paradox that while college education helps people escape poverty, Filipinos have to be rich to afford one.”

“I have worked hard so that students in Albay community colleges, especially in Daraga Community College, Manito Community College, and Rapurapu Community College will benefit from RA 10931 which I, humbly, authored principally and which I based on the Albay experience, ” Salceda said.

“Free tuitions and miscellaneous fees in state-run colleges and TESDA-accredited technical vocational schools is no longer just a dream. I am humbled to be the principal author of the law that has made this a reality,” said Salceda in a recent media interview in Albay's capital, Legazpi City.

At the state-ran Bicol University in Albay’s second district, which Salceda represents, some 28,000 students stand to benefit from the measure, with an annual subsidy of about PHP480 million.

Salceda said the law is a “most vital social legislation” that ushers in the Duterte administration’s “next wave (of) social revolution in building a more egalitarian society.”

Under RA 10931, aside from the free tuition and other fees, students who belong to the poorest families may even get additional financial assistance from the government in the form of conditional cash transfers.

RA 10931 has mechanisms that provide all Filipinos equal opportunities to quality education in both private and public educational institutions with its Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES) for Filipino Students and Student Loan Program (SLP) for Tertiary Education.

Salceda, who is senior vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee that ironed out the 2018 budget for the new law, said the UAQTE program also allocates some PHP1.3 billion in student loans for those who belong to the lowest 30 percent, who might need more financial aid for their college studies.

On his social media account, Salceda recently shared a message from the Daraga Community College ( DComC ) here--the first so far to publicly announce a notice on the registration for the national free college tuition program--that the school would be giving free college education to those who would register on April 21 and pass the entrance examinations set on April 23-28.

Traveling photo gallery tells stories of hope in Tabaco

By Mavic Conde (Rappler)

Istorya ng Pag-asa (Stories of Hope), a traveling photo gallery that aims to inspire and empower Filipinos, is currently hosted by Tabaco City in Albay

ALBAY, Philippines – If the world is made of stories, we want to fill it with hope. According to Daniel Goleman, author of the New York Times best seller Emotional Intelligence, "Hope is more than the naïve view that everything will turn out all right. It is believing that you have the will and the way to accomplish goals, even if there are big challenges."

Such are the stories featured in Istorya ng Pag-asa (Stories of Hope), a traveling photo gallery that aims to inspire and empower Filipinos. The Office of the Vice President got the original concept from a blog, and the current host is Tabaco City from April until May.

Below are two of the 17 stories featured in Tabaco.

Couple, business partners

Couple Lorna and Alex Bolata are practical and business-minded. With P3,100 (from the pagugom and pantomina dance during their wedding), they started a small buy-and-sell business by bringing native mats and scissors to Pasig from Bicol.

However, that proved unprofitable.

That was until one day, after her daily habit to pray inside a church, God indeed showed her the way. When she went outside the church, she saw a vendor selling bananas. She approached the vendor and asked about buying and selling it, including its source.

So off they went to Pier 8 in Tondo and bought the bananas their money could afford. With the 2,250 banana bundles in hand, they realized they didn't have the money for to transport these back to Bicol.

Around that time, someone whom Lorna knew from Malinao, a neighbor town of Tabaco, was also in the same area, and its jeepney had no backload! The couple hitched for a ride with their new products: bananas.

Little did they know that this would be a turning point for their business. When Typhoon Sisang hit the region, it devastated hectares of agricultural crops.

When they went back to Tondo, they had their own jeepney and brought home 9,000 banana bundles. Then they ventured into the bakery business, pioneering the habal-habal door-to-door delivery system in upland areas of Tabaco including Buhian, Lorna's barangay residence.

Now, the couple is focused on running their grocery store with assorted items for sale, from food and beverage, poultry food, and drinking water, among others. It is located on the ground floor of their 4-storey house, where their family had moved in last October. Their customers include those from upland Tabaco.

When asked for a piece of advice, she said one thing: Be true to your words, especially when dealing with suppliers.

Liwanag sa Dilim

Robert "Bert" Maravilla has a mission – to change the public's perception about mental illness. For him to do that, he volunteered to be part of the Social Work and Development Office (SWDO), as it is the local government's department handling endorsements of mental illness cases.

Every Thursday, the team brings vagrant psychotics roaming the city streets to Holy Face Rehabilitation Center for Mental Health in Barangay Tabiguian. He makes sure that they are clean for their weekly check-up, so "he would bathe them, put on them clean clothes, give them a shave, and even cut their nails."

He also seems familiar with the city's vagrants, as he could tell who is the "palaban" (fighter), whether or not they have a family in the city, and who are just "naligaw" (lost) from neighbor cities and towns.

A vagrant, with only a piece of sack wrapped around his waist, passed in front of us, while Bert and I were walking near the City Hall during the interview.

That one, he told, me is among the maisog (local term for palaban). He and his team would give them food and guide them to the City Hall to prepare them for their weekly check up and medication.

What about those who resist? He said he does not easily give up on them. "Nakikita ko ang sarili ko sa kanila." (I see myself in them.)

Yes, Bert is also mentally challenged. He also had those moments where he would wander the streets. There was a time when he brought groceries to the cashier, but come payment time, he had no money to buy them. The cashier was so mad at him, but he just smirked as the guard led him outside the mall.

That kind of "walang paki" (nonchalant) reaction, according to Bert, is "dala na ng pagiging wala sa sarili" (due to lack of self-consciousness).

He's thankful his family did not give up on him. His father would look for him when he would go out and wander the streets. But his father died and many of his friends stayed away from him. That's when he realized he had to stand up for himself.

Bert decided to enter a rehabilitation facility for mentally ill patients, and diligently availed of outpatient care afterwards. That experience shed the light for him, making him see that he was not alone and that medication, along with strong family support, can make mental illnesses manageable. "Tingnan mo ako (Look at me)," he said.

Now he is part of the SWDO office, not as a volunteer but a job order employee, living with and providing for his and her mother's everyday needs.

Before we parted ways, he said he's no longer dreaming big for himself. He need not do so because he's already performing a huge task. To advocate for mental health and actually care for those who are struggling – not everyone can do both.

Indigent seniors in Bicol to get additional cash aid

By Connie Calipay (PNA)

LEGAZPI CITY -- Poor senior citizens under the Social Pension Program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) will be receiving an additional cash aid this year, the DSWD-Bicol top official said Friday.

Arnel Garcia, the regional director of DSWD Bicol, said there are 195,107 active Social Pension beneficiaries in Bicol Region who will benefit from the new program. "The department targets to distribute the cash grants in July–August 2018,"Garcia said.

Garcia said a Social Pension beneficiary would be entitled to a separate unconditional cash transfer (UCT) grant even if he/she belongs to a Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) household or Listahanan-identified poor household.

The UCT, on the other hand, is a social welfare program under the TRAIN Law, which seeks to provide cash grants to poor households and individuals who may benefit from the lower income tax rates but may be adversely affected by the increase on taxes on fuel, automobiles, and sugar products.

Under the program, the senior citizens under the Social Pension Program are eligible beneficiaries including the 4Ps households, and the poor households identified by the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR) or the Listahanan. The UCT cash grant shall be provided one-time to the identified beneficiaries amounting to PHP2,400 in a year or PHP200 per month. This grant will increase in 2019-2020 to PHP3,600 or PHP300 per month.

The Social Pension Program is the government’s assistance to poor senior citizens aging 60 and above who are frail, sick or with a disability, with no regular income or support from families and relatives, and without a pension from private or government institutions.

Poor seniors are entitled to a monthly cash grant in the amount of PHP500 to supplement their daily subsistence, including their medical needs.

The program has been established through Republic Act 9994, or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010 which aims to improve the living condition of indigent senior citizens and to protect them from neglect and deprivation.

4Ps Bicol beneficiaries to get cash grant on April 24

By Connie Calipay (PNA)

LEGAZPI CITY -- The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) regional office in Bicol on Wednesday said a bank’s requested seven-day extension to download the funds to its partner conduits caused the delay in the release of conditional cash grants to poor beneficiaries in the region.

"The pay-out which was supposed to start April 17 (Tuesday) will be rescheduled on April 24,” said Glorei Lindio, DSWD coordinator of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

Lindio said the cash assistance that would be received by the beneficiaries on the re-scheduled date covers the month of January 2018, comprising the education grants of PHP500 for children in high school or PHP300 for children in elementary school, health aid amounting to PHP500, and rice subsidy of PHP600.

The Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) downloads the funds to its partner conduits that are responsible to directly release the cash grants to 4Ps beneficiaries.

Affected 4Ps beneficiaries are the Indigenous Peoples under Modified Conditional Cash Transfer Program (MCCT) and those without Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) cash cards and receive their grants through over-the counter pay-out.

"It also includes the assistance for the Unconditional Cash Transfer Program (UCT) amounting to PHP2,400 (PHP200 per month) for the whole year (January – December 2018),” said Lindio.

A total of 258,215 beneficiaries of 4Ps in the region are affected of the delay.

The cash assistance for the month of December 2017, April and May 2018 will be included in July 2018 pay-out.

It will be released in accordance to its scheduled pay-out but can be subject to change upon advisory of DSWD Central Office.


Duterte to grace motorcycle club’s convention in Legazpi City

By Mar S. Arguelles (Correspondent, Inquirer Southern Luzon)

LEGAZPI CITY-President Duterte is expected to arrive on Saturday afternoon to keynote the 24th National Federation of Motorcycle Clubs of the Philippines (NFMCP) National Convention in Legazpi City.

The convention, hosted by Bicol Steel Horses Club, awaits Duterte, a big motorbike rider, enthusiast and member of NFMCP, to meet and exchange pleasantries with its members, according to Daniel Garcia, Albay government spokesperson.

Garcia said over 3,000 bikers from all over the country began to arrive on Thursday to attend the three-day convention that started on April 20 at the Albay Peñaranda Park.

Security at the Park and the Albay Astrodome, the venues of the convention, was tightened following the arrival of the Presidential Security Group (PSG).

Garcia said Albay Gov. Al Francis Bichara and Legazpi Mayor Noel Rosal, with the province’s towns and cities executives, would welcome Duterte, who would arrive with Sen. JV Ejercito, Cesar Montano, and political adviser Francis Tolentino.

The convention will be highlighted by a “Unity Ride” of motorcycle riders on Saturday morning through the 50-kilometer Maharlika Highway from Legazpi City Boulevard to Misibis Resort in Bacacay to the Mayon Skyline Park in Tabaco City.

Garcia said all major hotels in Legazpi and neighboring towns and cities were fully booked for the event.

Third drug rehab center in Bicol to open in June

By Michael B. Jaucian (Philippine Daily Inquirer)

LIGAO CITY — A drug rehabilitation center, described as the biggest in the Bicol region, will start operating in this city in Albay province in two months, Gov. Al Francis Bichara said.

The center in the village of Tula-Tula Grande can accommodate 150 patients.

Bichara said the center’s construction was “almost 80-percent” complete.

According to Napoleon Arevalo, Department of Health Bicol regional director, two drug rehabilitation centers are operating in San Fernando town, Camarines Sur province, and in Malinao town, also in Albay.

Each accommodates 100 patients. The two-story, P5-million center here is funded by the Albay provincial government.

DSWD Bicol to release TRAIN cash aid for poor seniors

By Sally Atento-Altea (SAA/DSWD5/PIA5/Albay)

LEGAZPI CITY (PIA) -- The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) will soon be releasing additional cash aids to poor senior citizens in the Bicol region.

According to DSWD Bicol Regional Director Arnel Garcia about 195,107 poor senior citizens under DSWD's Social Pension Program in the region will be receiving the added assistance as part of the new Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law.

Under the TRAIN is the Unconditional Cash Transfer (UCT) Program which aims to assist poor households and individuals who may be affected by the increase in taxes fo some commodities.

"The TRAIN is the first package of the comprehensive tax reform program (CTRP) envisioned by President Duterte’s administration, which aims to correct a number of deficiencies in the tax system to make it simpler, fairer, and more efficient," Garcia said.

"The UCT on the other hand is a social welfare program under the TRAIN Law which seeks to provide cash grants to poor households and individuals who may benefit from the lower income tax rates but may be adversely affected by the increase on taxes on fuel, automobiles, and sugar products," he added.

Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps) households and poor households identified by the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR) or the Listahanan are also eligible beneficiaries of the UCT program.

Moreover, a social pension beneficiary shall be entitled to a separate UCT grant.

"A social pension beneficiary shall be entitled to a separate UCT grant even if he or she belongs to a 4Ps household or Listahanan identified poor household," Garcia said.

Garcia cited that the UCT cash grant amounting to Php 2,400 in a year or Php 200 per month will be given one-time to the identified beneficiaries. This grant will increase in 2019-2020 to Php 3,600 or Php 300 per month.

The DSWD will release the cash grants by July - Augist this year.

The Social Pension Program is the government’s assistance to poor senior citizens aging 60 years old and above who are frail, sick or with a disability, with no regular income or support from families and relatives, and without a pension from private or government institutions.

Under the program, poor seniors are entitled to a monthly P500 cash grant to supplement their daily subsistence, including their medical needs.

The program has been established through Republic Act 9994 or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010 which aims to improve the living condition of indigent senior citizens and to protect them from neglect and deprivation.

DSWD releases P864-M shelter aid for 3 Bicol provinces

By Connie Calipay (PNA)

LEGAZPI CITY -- The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) regional office for Bicol has released PHP864 million in funding for its Emergency Shelter Assistance (ESA) for households whose houses were partially damaged by Typhoon “Nina”.

DSWD regional director Arnel Garcia, in an interview on Monday, said the department formally transferred the first tranche of the ESA to the provincial governments of Albay, Camarines Sur and Catanduanes.

"For Catanduanes, we have PHP83 million; Camarines Sur with PHP533 million and for Albay, we have PHP247 million for total of PHP864 million,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dr. Eva Grageda, provincial social welfare chief of Albay, said they are finalizing the schedule of payouts to the residents of the municipalities with partially damaged houses during the onslaught of Typhoon Nina in Albay.

DSWD said those whose houses were partially damaged by Typhoon Nina last December 2016 received PHP10,000; while each household whose houses were totally damaged got PHP30,000.

DepEd opens 5,916 positions for teachers in Bicol

By Marlon Loterte (MAL/WSA-PIA5)

LEGAZPI CITY, Apr. 16 (PIA) -- A total of 5,916 teaching positions will be available for the coming school year in the entire Bicol region, according to the regional office of the Department of Education (DepEd) here.

DepEd Bicol regional director Ramon Fiel Abcede said that the 5,916 vacant teaching positions will be comprised of 2,739 for Kindergarten (Teacher I), 3,160 for Junior High School (Teacher II) and 17 for Senior High School (Teacher III).

Abcede said breakdown of the vacancies will also 2,075 for the province of Camarines Sur covering three division offices; 1,093 in Masbate with two division offices; 1,255 in Albay with four division offices; 675 in Camarines Norte; 659 in Sorsogon with two division offices; and 159 for the province of Catanduanes.

The hiring of new teachers is aligned with the pronouncement of the Department of Budget and Management for newly created positions for teachers this coming school year 2018 – 2019.

It can be recalled that the DBM has approved the creation of 75,252 teaching positions for kindergarten, junior high school, and senior high school for school year 2018 – 2019, comprised of 40,642 for kindergarten, 34,233 for Junior High School and 356 for Senior High Schol.

Abcede said that the hiring for the positions started late last year and the agency is targeting to fill out every slot before the start of the upcoming school year.

With this increasing teaching force, Abcede said that the new teacher – student ratio will be 1:26 or 1:28 compared to the 1:50 last year.

Meanwhile the budget for the salary of the teachers will come from the ‘new personnel budget’ of this year’s P553.31 billion pesos budget of the DepEd.

Teacher entry level or Teacher I will receive P20,179 monthly or P242,148 annually plus their 74,358 bonuses and allowance yearly. Overall, a total of P26,375 a Teacher I earns per month.

Last year, DepEd also opened 4,000 teaching position in the Bicol region.

DENR serves notices to erring Bicol resort owners

By Celso Amo, Cet Dematera (The Philippine Star)

LEGAZPI CITY , Philippines — Amid the crackdown on establishments violating environmental laws in Boracay, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has issued notices of violation to more than 100 resort owners in the Bicol region over improper waste disposal.

Some resorts in Camarines Sur, Camarines Norte, Albay and Masbate either have no water discharge permit or permit to operate, Eva Ocfemia, Environmental Management Bureau (EMB)-Bicol technical director, said.

“Our priority areas are resorts… where most local and foreign tourists go,” Ocfemia said.

She said they would meet with owners of erring establishments ahead of a technical conference to be conducted by the EMB for owners and operators of resorts and ecotourism destinations in the region.

Ocfemia said they would issue closure orders if resort owners and operators will not comply with the requirements of the DENR.

“We did not issue a closure order… because the water quality is still within the required standard. But we demand that there should be immediate action to address violations,” she said.

“We don’t want environmental degradation to occur before we take action,” Ocfemia added. Alternatives to Boracay

The Department of Tourism (DOT) in Bicol said it is bracing for a surge in tourist arrivals with the scheduled closure of Boracay for six months.

Benjamin Santiago, DOT-Bicol director, said Catanduanes is “most ready” to receive tourists after having complied with a comprehensive tourism plan and code.

Santiago also recommended the white sand beaches in Caramoan, Camarines Sur; Ticao island in Masbate; Matnog, Sorsogon; West Coast in Albay, as well as Calaguas and Parola islands in Vinzons and and Jose Panganiban towns, respectively, in Camarines Norte.

He said tourists should also try whale shark interaction in Sorsogon and Masbate and all-terrain vehicle tours around Mayon Volcano in Albay.

Santiago said tourist arrivals in Bicol increased by over 20 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year.

Bicol NFA rice depleted

By Celso Amo

LEGAZPI CITY --- The National Food Authority (NFA) in Bicol has admitted to the public that it has no more buffer stock in its warehouses.

Beth Jacob, Bicol-NFA information officer based here, yesterday said there’s no more NFA rice for distribution to NFA accredited sellers in Bicol.

“Our existing stocks are those reserved earlier by the Department of Social Welfare and Development,” said Jacob.

She said that quality wise it was just timely the inventory of the rice stocks for six months was depleted.

“But as far as our mandate dictates, we were not able to address our 15-day buffer stock,” said Jacob.

She said the NFA Council was not able to approve immediately the importation order so as to replenish the buffer stock good only for 15 days.

“During many interviews I had with the media, I already said that a worst-case scenario would come when the NFA’s inventory stock would be depleted if the imported rice won’t arrive soon,” she added.

She said that approval for rice importation was already “too late.”

To replenish its buffer stock, Jacob said NFA palay purchasers have been working double time to buy palay from rice farmers to take advantage of the harvest season.

“But we are still at a disadvantage compared to private buyers since we can only buy a

kilo of palay at P17.00 compared to private and commercial rice buyers who offer as high as P19.00 to P20.00 a kilo of palay,” said Jacob.

She said the importation request has already been approved by NFA Council during its last meeting which was attended by the National Economic and Development Authority(NEDA), Department of Budget and Management(DBM), Land Bank(LB), and Department of Finance(DoF).

“The meeting was also attended by President Duterte who ordered to fast-track the rice importation,” she added.

The rice purchase is still being negotiated and it’s not yet clear if it’s government-to-government or government-to-private transaction, she said.

Most likely it will arrive on May or June, she said, but from April to May the NFA has no more stocks to be sold to the poor and those living in far-flung barangays who are solely dependent on cheaper NFA rice in the country.

“But if the importation will be government-to-government it will be okay in ten days but if it will be from government-to-private it will take at most forty five days,” she added.

She said this is the first time in four years that NFA buffer stock has been depleted.

She said government-to-government importation is the best mode to replenish the depleted NFA rice stocks.

“NFA functions as price neutralizer; that is, if there are no NFA rice available in the market the price of rice sold by private supplier will surely shoot up,” she added.

She recalled that the NFA has been lobbying as early as May last year for the government to approve another round of rice importation.

“The NFA depends on the decision of the NFA Council,” Jacob said.

Last year, only 500,000 bags of rice arrived in Bicol, comprising one fourth of the NFA requirement for the whole year supply.

Jacob added that the 15-day buffer stock is equivalent to 50,000 bags of rice because Bicol consumes 40,000 bags of rice daily in which 10 percent is NFA rice while the rest are commercial rice, and in 15 days it’s 60,000 bags of rice, and in one month it is 120,000 bags of rice. One year supply for Bicol is 1.5 million of imported rice including buffer stock.

3 nabbed, ‘shabu’ seized in Albay drug buy-bust

By Mar S. Arguelles - (Correspondent, Inquirer Southern Luzon)

LEGAZPI CITY – Anti-narcotics operatives arrested three suspected illegal drug peddlers and seized 100 grams of suspected ‘shabu’ (crystal meth) worth P1 million during a drug buy-bust operation on Wednesday afternoon in Tabaco City in Albay province, a top official of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said Thursday.

Siblings Alexis and Seneca, and their cousin Maximino, all surnamed Badoso, were arrested by PDEA operatives at their residence in Barangay (village) Bongabong around 5 p.m., according to Christian Frivalado, chief of PDEA Bicol.

The anti-drug operatives seized two pieces knot-tied plastic bags each containing 50 grams of suspected shabu, a .45 caliber handgun, and assorted drug paraphernalia.

Frivaldo, in a text message, said Alexis is a high-value drug personality included in the PDEA drug watchlist.

Remaining 9,284 Mayon evacuees now back home

By Celso Amo

LEGAZPI CITY --- About 2,289 families or 9,284 persons from the 6-kilometer permanent danger zone who are still staying in 12 evacuation centers from the towns of Camalig, Guinobatan, Malilipot and Tabaco City were sent home after the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) lowered the present Alert Level 3 to 2 Holy Thursday morning.

Renato Solidum, Department of Science and Technology(DOST) Undersecretary and Philippine Institute of Volcanology(Phivolcs) director, said the downgrading of present Alert Level 3 to 2 means the critical parameters of Mayon Volcano have shown a general drop from the trend.

“But this doesn’t mean there’s no more abnormality because the volcano is still inflated compared to previous baseline survey but the past observation that it has been inflated also showed a downward trend,” Solidum explained.

He said lava flows from the crater which was observed since March 18 and the number of earthquakes had registered to zero.

“This shows that the general feature of Mayon Volcano has a lesser degree of abnormality.”

Phivolcs lowered Mayon Volcano’s status from Alert Level 3 (decreased tendency towards hazardous eruption) to Alert Level 2 (moderate level of unrest) after its monitoring network and active observation of day-to-day conditions recorded a general decline in unrest.

For the past two weeks, seismic activity has waned from a peak of eighty-two to less than ten rockfall events attributed to the collapse of unstable lava flow deposits on the Miisi, Bonga and Basud drainage systems.

Low frequency earthquakes associated with magma degassing and short ash plumes were last recorded on March 15, 2018, although lava flow effusion from the crater could be detected until March 18, 2018.

The overall decline in seismicity indicates that there is currently no active transport of eruptible magma to the shallow levels of the edifice.

Since February 20, 2018, medium-term deflation of Mayon’s edifice has been recorded by electronic tilt and Precise Leveling (PL) surveys despite short-term episodes of inflation of its lower and middle slopes.

The downtrend in ground deformation follows a period of continuous inflation that began in October-November 2017 and implies that magma recharge from deep to shallower levels of the edifice has decreased.

Based on medium-term PL data, nonetheless, the volcano is still inflated relative to January 2010 baselines, most likely due to the presence of remnant magma beneath the edifice.

Magmatic sulfur dioxide or SO2 flux measured for the past two weeks has fluctuated within the range of 500-2000 tons a day which is lower than 700-4500 tons a day for the period of eruption from January 13, 2018 to March 8, 2018.

No new lava has been detected on Mayon’s summit crater by March 18, 2018.

The decline in observable surface parameters as above shown is consistent with the cessation of magma supply to the shallow levels of the volcanic edifice.

However, the lowering of the alert status should not be interpreted to mean that the volcano’s unrest has ceased, considering that the edifice is still inflated relative to its baseline level, Phivolcs officials warned.

Cedric Daep, Albay provincial security and emergency management office (APSEMO) chief, said full decampment of all Mayon evacuees has now been achieved.

“This is just timely since all evacuees want to observe Holy Week with their families in their homes,” Daep said adding that all issued Mayon advisories are now lifted.

Tourists were allowed to observe their pilgrimage during Lent to the Mayon Resthouse in Barangay Buang in Tabaco City and ATV operators can now resume their operation.

“But mountain climbing to the crater and going to the lava front are still prohibited due to the threat of rock falls,” Daep said.

He warned that said those who bring visitors and tourists to risky and dangerous areas will be responsible.

DA Albay launches rabies surveillance app

By Sally Atento-Altea (SAA/PIA5/Albay)

LEGAZPI CITY (PIA) -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) Albay provincial office has launched the Bite Incidence Tool for Enhanced Rabies Surveillance (BITERS) mobile-based application (app) as part of the intensified effort to eliminate rabies.

According to DA Bicol information officer II Jayson M. Gonzales, this app is part of the project of DA-Bureau of Animal Industry (DA-BAI) in collaboration with DA Bicol and LGU Albay entitled “Technology Development to Improve Surveillance and Reduce the Human Health Impact of Rabies in Dogs in the Philippines”.

"This app will also fast-track the practical linking of government to the community especially to the victim regarding rabies and its prevention," Gonzales said.

He said that the project, in general, was implemented on November 2, 2017 in three Animal Bite Treatment Centers (ABTCs). These are the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital (BRTTH) in Legazpi City, Josefina Belmonte Duran Memorial District Hospital (JBDMDH) in Ligao City and Ziga Memorial District Hospital (ZMDH) in Tabaco City.

The project deployed three Animal and Medical Health Personnel (BITERS team) in the ABTCs who will gather details and information needed to monitor and give corresponding diagnoses to both the victim and the biting dog.

"After 14 days, the BITERS team will follow-up the patient regarding the condition of the animal and the result of the laboratory samples," Gonzales said.

He noted that the BITERS app will then be used to record and interpret the surveillance data to facilitate follow-upsf suspect bite incidents and promptly detect rabid dogs.

In support to this project, the DA-Regional Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Cabangan, Camalig, Albay offers free laboratory tests until 2020.

Enjoying nature in Albay’s sole high-end green resort

(Rappler.com)

ALBAY, Philippines – In Albay’s sole high-end resort situated in Cagraray Island in Bacacay town, tourists don’t need to go far from the shoreline to catch a glimpse of colorful fish.

Tourists are welcomed by a school of fish at the breakwater of the Marina Bay area of the Misibis Bay Resort, less than 10 meters away from the shore.

Stephen Harris, a Canadian tourist along with his Filipina wife Celeste snorkeled within the Marina area of the resort. The couple returned to Misibis Bay Resort after 9 years.

“We’re supposed to be heading to Catanduanes but we decided to go back in Misibis 9 years after our first visit here. It was an amazing experience again with a lot of development, with healthy corals home of different colorful fish and of marine life,” Stephen said.

Stephen did not use any GoPro underwater camera to capture the rich marine life. He described the bay as a “paradise” with clean water and rejuvenating coral reefs.

Green resort

Misibis Bay is a resort with a fish sanctuary, and is to home giant clams. Located in Barangay Misibis, the resort known for its white sand beach is the first high-end "green" resort in Bicol as it is powered by solar panels.

Cecille Balala, associate engineering manager of Misibis Bay, said that the solar panels genetate 310 kwh per day.

Businessman Elizaldy “Zaldy” S. Co of Sunwestville Realty and Development Corporation developed Misibis Bay and Residential Resort. Co wants to put Bicol on the world map.

“We put up this resort to change the perception that Bicol can be proud no more than Mayon Volcano.” Co said, adding that the resort was built with enviromental protection in mind.

The resort counts as among its guests world leaders, local celebrities, Hollywood actors, international models and beauty queens, and NBA players.

Natural beauty

On the way to the resort, visitors can stop to appreciate panoramic views of islets with Mayon volcano as a backdrop; Sula Channel, which used to provide sanctuary galleons during typhoons when the country was still under Spanish rule; and Albay Gulf and the rolling mountains.

From the resort, one can walk head to caves which houses limestone formations. Pototan Cave in neighboring Batan Island can be reached by boat.

Just 20 minutes from the resort is Pighologan Cave. After a half-hour boat ride through the underground riven, tourists can visit the monkey sanctuary in Manaet Islet.

Historically, Cagraray Island in Bacacay town where the Misibis Bay Resort is located is considered as a historical jewel because of the archeological relics found there between l879 and 188.

Juan Alvarez Guevarra found sacred burial jars in two of at least 28 caves in the island. Local historians suggest that these archeological evidences could prove that Cagraray Island was the cradle of Bicolano civilization about 200,000 to 300,000 years ago.

The construction of a coastal road network in Cagraray Island is underway former Bicol tourism regional director Maria Nini Ong-Ravanilla worked out the development of Cagraray Island with the help of Albay lawmakers.

LGUs, DPWH ordered to enforce safety measures in Albay roads

By Manly Ugalde

LEGAZPI—Malacañang has finally stepped in to ensure public safety in roads, warning local government executives with mandatory compliance 24/7.

In Memorandum Circular 208-30 dated March 7, 2018, Interior Secretary Eduardo M. Año said President Duterte has emphasized during a recent Cabinet meeting about the recurring complaints of Filipinos regarding stalled and ongoing road projects and the dangers they pose to the public.

The massive road- and bridge- widening program recorded close to 8,000 road accidents in Albay alone from 2015 to 2016, the Philippine National Police said.

Año’s memorandum mandated local chief executives and local offices of the Department of the Interior and Local Government to see to it that contractors properly notify the public in advance through posters and tarpaulins, including lightings at night time prior to the implementation of the project until completion, or face sanctions. The circular also warned delay in the completion of projects.

Local officials, however, describe Año’s memorandum as a mere reiteration of past secretaries of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which unfortunately landed only on desks without actions from local officials concerned.

Citing the vanishing official billboards on projects that had long been embodied in the bidding process, most infrastructure projects in Bicol are simply started and completed without the billboard.

The official billboard, which has become an effective tool concerning the transparency program, forms part of the Commission on Audit circular, titled “Information and Publicity on Programs/Projects/Activities of Government Agencies.” It shall contain information, such as the source of funds, name of project, project cost, name of contractor, date started and completion date.

Then-Bicol Regional Party Committee Chairman and New People’s Army (NPA) commander Sotero Llamas strongly slammed the DPWH about the vanishing billboard on projects being done in collaboration with politicians.

Contractors have reportedly been complaining the billboards have become a leeway for the NPA rebels to impose revolutionary taxes on projects.

But, a month before his ambush and murder in Tabaco City in 2012, Llamas denied in an interview with journalists at the Legazpi airport site the allegations of the contractors, saying corrupt engineers, contractors and politicians simply hated the posting of billboards on project to avoid scrutiny from the public.

On March 8, 2017, then-newly installed Bicol DPWH regional director Danilo Versola was briefed and interviewed by journalists about the vanishing billboards on projects and the rampant obstructions in roads as a result of the massive roads and bridge widening. Versola promised to act on the complaint.

With a whooping P74-billion budget for Bicol, however, the issues about the vanishing billboards continued to haunt the DPWH, with Versola nearing retirement come August 2018.

Phivolcs lowers Mayon volcano’s alert status to level 2

By Michael B. Jaucian (Correspondent, Inquirer Southern Luzon /kga)

Albay exec orders LGUs to send home evacuees

LEGAZPI CITY – The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has lowered Mount Mayon’s alert status from level 3 to level 2 on Maundy Thursday.

“Mayon’s volcano monitoring network and active observation of day-to-day conditions have recorded a general decline in unrest,” noted Phivolcs’ 8 a.m. bulletin.

The agency also said that among their observations on Mayon include the volcano’s diminished crater glow “from intense to faint,” the lack of lava effusion since the one last observed on March 18, and the stabilization of gravity-driven lava flow.

“The decline in observable surface parameters is consistent with the cessation of magma supply to the shallow levels of the volcanic edifice,” the Phivolcs bulletin further said.

Albay Gov. Al Francis Bichara, who also heads the provincial disaster risk reduction and management, ordered local government units of Camalig, Guinobatan, Malilipot, and Tabaco City to send home all their evacuees, who sought temporary shelter in schools in January.

The volcano showed heightened signs of unrest in January that prompted Phivolcs to raise the alert status on Mayon up to level 4.

As of Wednesday, there were still 1,300 families – or 5,016 individuals – living in nine evacuation centers in Albay.

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