Quezon City News January 2017

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Quezon City - Archived News
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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.

Dietary supplement is a product that contains vitamins, minerals, herbs or other botanicals, amino acids, enzymes, and/or other ingredients intended to supplement the diet. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has special labeling requirements for dietary supplements and treats them as foods, not drugs.

Manufacturers and distributors of dietary supplements and dietary ingredients are prohibited from marketing products that are adulterated or misbranded. That means that these firms are responsible for evaluating the safety and labeling of their products before marketing to ensure that they meet all the requirements of DSHEA and FDA regulations.

P100k incentive for QC’s ‘100’ folk

By Rio N. Araja

QUEZON City Mayor Herbert Bautista has approved an ordinance increasing tenfold cash incentives to residents who have reached the age of 100.

The city government’s incentive will be given on top of other incentives from the national government, Bautista said.

Under City Ordinance Sangguniang Panlungsod No. 2542, the city’s centenarians will now be rewarded with a cash incentive of P100,000, from P10,000 previously.

Principally authored by District 6 Councilor Roger Juan, the measure highlights the city government’s continuing effort to promote the welfare of its elderly residents, especially those who are aged 100 and older, the mayor said.

According to the Office of Senior Citizens Affairs, Quezon City has about 126 living centenarians, 102 of them female.

Based on OSCA records, Quezon City’s oldest living centenarian is 109-year-old Salamah Guiama Shalik of Barangay Culiat.

Quezon City, Japan expand inter-agency knowhow on Waste Management innovations

(QC PAISO/RJB/SDL/PIA-NCR)

QUEZON CITY, Jan. 28 (PIA)— The Quezon City Government, through its Environmental Protection and Waste Management Department (EPWMD), and the Ministry of Environment Japan (MOEJ), through its experts Hitachi Zosen Corporation and EX Research Institute recently conducted a workshop to expand inter-agency knowhow on Waste Management innovations.

The “Local Workshop on Waste Management between the Philippines and Japan,” held at Luxent Hotel in Quezon City, brought together key players in this area of concern from various National Government agencies such as the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC), Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB), QC Government Departments, and various civil society groups.

Councilor Elizabeth Delarmente expressed QC’s gratitude to the MOEJ for their technical assistance in the city’s program to address the challenges of solid waste management in urban communities. She welcomed the possibility of introducing environment-friendly technologies that will turn solid waste into a resource that can be maximized instead of being a burden.

Ms. Hiroko Yokota, Section Chief of the Office of Sound Material-Cycle Society – MOEJ, also expressed her gratitude that QC welcomed the initiative of establishing a partnership program with the City of Osaka to learn from the latter’s practices of proper and effective solid waste management. She said that the Government of Japan will be undertaking two pilot initiatives to develop model cities in municipal solid waste management through city-to-city partnership programs: one with – one with QC and Osaka and the other with Davao City and Kitakyushu as model cities for waste management.

During the workshop was the result of the Hitachi Zosen Corporation’s and EX Research Institute’s Feasibility Study for a Waste-to-Energy (WTE) Facility in Quezon City a study on the viability of establishing a WTE facility in Quezon City to address the city’s waste challenges was presented.

The workshop provided a venue to discuss appropriate technologies, challenges in existing policies and the need to update these given evolving and more efficient and environment-friendly systems available in the world today, the sources of financing for solid waste management programs, and current initiatives being implemented by the Quezon City Government.

The activity is a component of the City Government’s initiatives to gradually phase out the city’s dependency on landfills and expand its options with regard to waste management.

QC eats: What to expect from Oriental Palace's new dishes

By Jeeves de Veyra

MANILA -- Just in time for Chinese New Year, Oriental Palace on Quezon City's original restaurant row Tomas Morato has launched new dishes created by Beijing chef Tsoi Chiu Fai.

Collaborating with renowned Chinese chefs is the latest stage in the evolution of Oriental Palace, which started as Wah Yuen, a noodle and dimsum restaurant in Escolta that gained a following among Binondo diners and office workers who looked forward to its constantly changing Wah Yuen Rice served for late lunch.

While Oriental Palace is now known mainly as a Chinese seafood restaurant, Tsoi is moving into exciting territory by introducing dishes with other Asian flavors.

Tsoi’s 26 years in the restaurant business include stints in five-star hotels and three-Michelin-star restaurants in Asia. He is also a popular VIP chef, often being called to prepare banquets for heads of state and celebrities. His cuisine is characterized as being light and healthy without sacrificing flavor.

The new menu items are dominated by seafood entrees that have a non-Chinese spin to them. Tsoi, for instance, uses a Thai sweet chili sauce for the lightly breaded scallops and a Singaporean chili sauce for the breaded squid to add a little heat to to these dishes.

Oriental Palace’s version of Typhoon Shelter Crab is a delight for crustacean lovers, this time adding a Chinese spin to the traditionally Singaporean specialty.

For those looking for food that's light and healthy, try out the steamed Oriental Garoupa Fish Flower Style and the Sauteed Celery Black Fungus With Chinese Herbs. These dishes also showcase the artistry of Oriental Palace’s cooks with backdrops of Iceberg lettuce, flowers and rice noodle baskets.

Going in the other direction of flavor, adding the sweetness of candied walnut to the creamy sautéed prawns was a hit.

Another sweet combination was adding a couple of drops of Hennessy XO Cognac to the Double Boiled Spareribs with Clam Shell in Clear Soup. The cognac’s smoky sweetness adding depth to the soup.

For those looking for meat, the T-Bone Beef with Black Pepper Sauce is highly recommended. Flavor oozes out of each braised bite-sized bit with golden mushrooms.

DA to donate brown rice to various charities

(BusinessMirror)

The #BROWN4good Challenge, a social-media campaign of the Department of Agriculture (DA), is donating more than a million pesos worth of brown rice to chosen charities nationwide.

To start the donations at the National Capital Region (NCR), celebrities Kylie Padilla and Mikael Daez distributed packs of brown rice to over 200 families in Payatas, Quezon City, on January 19. They also helped serve brown-rice arroz caldo to children from the said community in coordination with the local government of Payatas, Komunidad Kay Kristo (KKK-Payatas) and the ladies of Bayan Muna-Payatas.

The rest of the brown-rice donations for NCR will be given by ABS-CBN Foundation to over 400 families from communities along the Pasig River.

Meanwhile, regional donations have already started in the cities of Cebu, Davao and Iloilo, among others. Beneficiaries include elders, indigenous peoples, street children and drug rehabilitees at charitable institutions supported by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Combining hash-tagging, selfie/food photography and the challenge craze, the #BROWN4good Challenge enjoined the public to do “four goodness” simply by eating brown rice. Every photo of a brown-rice meal posted in social media from August 28 to December 5, 2016, with a hashtag was equated to a cup of brown rice for the charities.

The DA said the campaign was a way to inform the public of the four goodness of brown rice: personal goodness considering its health benefits; goodness to the farmers; goodness for the country, as brown rice has 10 percent higher milling recovery; and for others, such as the beneficiaries of the chosen charities who will receive brown rice for their consumption.

“We’re happy that many were encouraged to eat brown rice because of the challenge. They had different motivations. But whatever that is, we are glad they committed to eat brown rice regularly, with some even committing for life,” said Hazel V. Antonio, campaign director of the Be Riceponsible Campaign.

The Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) said brown rice is unpopular among low- and middle-income classes, despite its health benefits, because of its high price. By commissioning farmers’ cooperatives to be suppliers of good-quality brown rice and linking them to retailers and food establishments, PhilRice was able to make it available in major cities at P37 to P45 per kilogram.

“While it was made around 40 percent cheaper than in malls, farmers were still able to get income of as much as six times higher because of the project. Thus, consumers were able to afford it while also increasing the income of farmers,” Antonio said.

“The #BROWN4good Challenge proved that Filipinos are just deterred by the high price of brown rice. Given more affordable and accessible supply, more would be willing to embrace it for good. Thus, the challenge that DA would continue to address,” she added.

The #BROWN4good Challenge is part of the bigger campaign, dubbed as Be Riceponsible, a social mobilization initiative created to spread awareness on the value of every rice grain and to encourage the consumption of healthier rice options, such as brown or unpolished white rice.

Quezon City, Yangon region to ink sister city agreement in Feb.

(PNA), FPV/SFM

MANILA, Jan. 25 (PNA) -- Quezon City and Yangon region will sign in February a Sister City Agreement in February.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Wednesday said this will be the first twinning agreement of Myanmar with a Philippine city.

Yangon Mayor U Maung Maung Soe will visit the Philippines on the first week of February 2017, to sign the Sister City Agreement with Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista, according to the DFA.

The DFA said the agreement will strengthen bilateral relations through meaningful people-to-people exchanges and better trade relations.

The signing of Myanmar’s first twinning agreement with the Philippines coincides with the Philippine chairmanship of ASEAN this year.

Zero waste month celebration slated from January 26 to 29

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) and the National Solid Waste Management Commission (NSWMC) will lead this year’s celebration of Republic Act 9003, and the Zero Waste Month from January 26 to 29 in Quezon City.

Also known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000, the law promotes proper solid-waste management and mandates local government units (LGUs) to implement solid-waste management programs that will address the looming garbage crisis.

With the theme “Engaging Response to the Changing Environment”, the DENR-EMB, NSWMC and zero waste advocates will showcase various ways to reduce, reuse and recycle (3Rs) solid wastes during the one-day event.

January of every year is declared as Zero Waste Month.

The DENR-EMB, which serves as the secretariat of the NSWMC has prepared an array of activities, including exhibition, bike run/fun-ride, symposia, stage play and concert next week, starting on Thursday, January 26, at the Quezon Memorial Circle.

The event hosted by the Quezon City government is held in partnership with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Climate Change Commission, and the departments of the Interior and Local Government, Science and Technology, and the Philippine Information Agency.

Mayor Herbert Bautista, Sen. Cynthia Villar, Environment Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez are expected to lead the event, with other government officials and non- governmental organization leaders.

Exhibitors include the EMB Central Office, EMB Regional Offices (NCR, Region 3 and Region 4A), the Quezon City government, the NSWMC, Climate Change Commission and Zero Waste and Recycling Movement of the Philippines, among others.

Ely Ildelfonso, executive director of the NSWMC Secretariat, said there are a number of ways to reduce garbage produce by as much as 75 percent through recycling and composting alone.

The official said LGUs will learn a lot from the three-day event to help address their respective localities’ garbage woes.

DSWD, MetroBank to give-away 10,000 family packs to non-4Ps beneficiaries

(PNA), RMA/LSJ/EDS

MANILA, Jan. 23 (PNA)--The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) together with Metro Bank Foundation will be giving-away 10,000 bags filled with food items starting Jan. 28 until Feb. 2, 2017 to poorest families listed in the DSWD’s Listahanan but are not beneficiaries of the Pantawid ng Pamilyang Pilipino (4Ps) program of the DSWD.

Listahanan is a database of the poor which is formerly known as National Household Targetting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR).

The grocery bags also dubbed as “Bags of Blessing Project” is a nationwide gift-giving project of Metrobank in partnership with DSWD.

This partnership was sealed Monday in a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) by Secretary Judy M. Taguiwalo with GT Foundation Inc. (GTFI) Executive Director and Metrobank Foundation President Aniceto M. Sobrepena, and GTFI Deputy Executive Director and Metrobank Foundation Executive Director Nicanor L. Torres, Jr. at the DSWD National Capital Region (DSWD) in Legarda, Manila.

The following were agreed upon as project’s distribution sites:

a) Metro Manila: Taguig City, Makati City, Manila City, Pasay City, Marikina City, Quezon City, Navotas City, Caloocan City;

b) Provinces:

1)Luzon: Imus, Cavite; Balanga, Bataan; Sta. Rosa, Laguna; Baguio City;

2)Visayas: Iloilo City; Cebu City; Palo, Leyte; and

3) Mindanao: Davao City; Zamboanga City; Cotabato City.

There will be 1,000 beneficiaries from the City of Manila and another 1,000 from Davao City, while for the rest of the sites, there will be 500 beneficiaries.

Meanwhile, the validation of the list of poor but non-4Ps beneficiaries provided by the Listahanan with Field Offices' staff and barangay officers are currently ongoing except for Field Offices VIII and XII whose validations have already been completed.

Social workers from the concerned barangays provided augmentation support to the Field Offices' staff to fast track the evaluation.

The actual launching of the BOB project will be held the start of the Chinese New Year on January 28 at Taguig Lakeshore Hall C6 Road, 393 C-6 Lower Bicutan, Taguig City.

“We are glad for this partnership with Metrobank Foundation. The Bags of Blessing Project is a very worthy activity which will benefit many impoverished Filipino families. We hope that other institutions will consider implementing similar campaigns and projects to reach out to the less fortunate and to share with them what we can,” Sec. Taguiwalo said.

She also looks forward that DSWD’s partnership with Metrobank Foundation and the GTFI will not end with the Bags of Blessing Project but will continue and lead to similar projects.

QC extend deadline for biz tax payment

(QC PAISO/RJB/SDL/PIA-NCR)

QUEZON CITY (PIA)--Quezon City has extended the deadline for first quarter tax payments.

Taxpayers now have until February 3 to settle their tax obligations without penalties.

The extension is provided under City Ordinance 2550 which was approved by Mayor Herbert Bautista on January 16.

The deadline for the payment of business taxes in Quezon City has been extended from January 20 to February 3.

The grant of the extension was described as necessary to accommodate the large number of taxpayers who will be paying their business taxes, which continue to remain as major income source for the city.

The extension also proves necessary in providing taxpayers the opportunity to avail of the benefits of prompt payment under the city’s existing tax relief ordinances.

Mayor Bautista has ordered the extension of the working days and hours of the different offices involved in tax assessment and payments in time for the first quarter deadline for the payment of business taxes and fees.

Based on the January 18 collection report submitted by the city treasurer’s office, the city has already collected P814,066,328.41 in business taxes.

The amount posted was P58,036,429.56 more than what was collected by the city during the same period last year.

Section 167 of Republic Act 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991, provides that all local taxes, fees and charges shall be paid within the first 20 days of January or of each subsequent quarter but the Sangguniang Panlungsod may, for a justifiable reason or cause, extend the payment period not exceeding six months .

The ordinance, principally authored by Councilor Victor Ferrer, Jr., Franz Pumaren and Allan Benedict Reyes, was approved by the City Council on second reading during a special session on January 16 and was passed on third and final reading on the same date.

QC bats for strict enforcement of drunk and drug driving

(QC PAISO/RJB/SDL/PIA-NCR)

QUEZON CITY, Jan. 21 (PIA)--Alarmed by the increase in the number of deaths and accidents related to driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs, the Quezon City government is pressing for the strict enforcement of Republic Act 10586, otherwise known the Anti-Drunk and Drugged Driving Act of 2013.

As provided in City Resolution No. SP-6932, S-2016 approved by the 36-member Quezon City Council, the city urged the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to strictly implement the provisions of RA 10586, which seeks to penalize the acts of driving under the influence of alcohol, dangerous drugs and other intoxicating substances.

Principally authored by Councilor Oliviere Belmonte, the ordinance cited as imperative the need to implement the law, including the criminal penalties provided by it “so as to control the drug abuse problem” if there is any as Belmonte takes into consideration that these substances often cause significant physical, mental or social dysfunction not only to the driver but also to the passenger and the people around.

As provided for under RA 10586, law enforcement officers of the LTO or any authorized officer trained and deputized by the LTO, are mandated to enforce the provisions of the said law.

Recently, the Highway Patrol Group of the Philippine National Police reported that the number of vehicular accidents associated with drunk driving is increasing.

The Philippines ranked 81st among the countries with high alcohol-death rate as reported by the World Health Organization.

Hortikultura 2017 set February 3-15 in Quezon City

By Zac B. Sarian

The annual garden show, Horticultura 2017, of the Philippine Horticultural Society will be staged at the Flower Garden at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City on February 3-15.

The event will be highlighted by plant as well as landscape booth competitions participated in by different individuals and garden groups. Another feature is the commercial booths where the gardening public can source their favorite plants and gardening supplies.

Garden shows are a means of promoting the ornamental plant business which is an important source of livelihood, especially for micro and small entrepreneurs who grow plants for sale, each catering to niche markets.

Many of the participants in the show are plant business entrepreneurs but there are also some who are considered hobbyists. Many of these hobbyists eventually become commercial growers themselves as they come to realize that there is money in growing and selling plants.

In a garden show, visitors get to know the latest developments in the plant business. They come to know about unusual ornamentals, flowers and new technologies in production and marketing.

Besides the daily lectures on timely gardening topics, there are other highlights such as the art exhibit on waling-waling by Bimbo Vergara. In the morning of February 4, a Saturday, there will be an on-the-spot painting competition for kids as well as adults. On two Saturdays, Feb. 4 and 11, there will be agribusiness consultancy in the morning and plant clinic in the afternoon. In the afternoon of February 11, there will be story telling for kids, parents and teachers.

For the whole duration of the show, the Bureau of Plant Industry will put up a One-Stop Help Desk where they can assist in plant export and import, plant quarantine and provision of domestic transport permit.

Meanwhile, here is the schedule of daily lectures:

Feb. 3 at 2 to 4 pm, Easy Carnivores for the Tropics by Dr. Kurt Tan; Feb. 4, 10 to 12 am, Import and Export Permit Requirements by BPI; 12 noon to 2 pm, Growing Cacti and Succulents by Lino Rom; 2 to 4 pm, Selection Techniques for Ornamental Crop Breeding by Rey Pimentel.

On Feb. 5, Sunday, 9 am to 12 noon, Livelihood Training on Water Lily Weaving by Rhoda Lodronio; Ecological Solid Waste Management in Las Piñas by Robert Villaron of Villar Sipag Foundation; 2- 4 pm, Strengthening the Aroid Breeding Activities in the Philippines by Nanding Aurigue Jr.

Feb. 6, Monday, 2-4 pm, Introducing Tillandsia Hybrids in the International Market, by Doreen Dofitas; Feb. 7, Tuesday, 2-4 pm, Living Walls in the Urban Environment by Zayra Bulawan; Feb. 8, Wednesday, 2-4 pm, The Promise of Hibiscus (breeding, propagation and marketing) by Dr. Francisco San Diego and Joseph Bautista of the International Hibiscus Society. Thursday, Feb. 9, 2-4 pm, Orchid Conservation Strategies and Utilization for the Floriculture Industry, by Mark Angelo Pagdato. On Friday, Feb. 10, Dr. Carmela Española will lecture on Philippine Biodiversity: Know Our Natural Heritage.

On Saturday, Feb. 11, 10-12 noon, Adela Ang and Pearl Banaag will conduct a lecture on the benefits of Ashitaba. On the same day from 2-4 pm, Louie Tabing and Dr. Candida Adalla will talk on Virgin Coconut Oil Making Opportunities & Extraction of Essential Plant Ingredients. On the same day at the Stage Area, 10 am to 12 noon, Dr. Lolita Viyar and Michael Angelo Ragasa will conduct a mushroom growing and processing seminar.

On Sunday, Feb. 12, from 10 to 12 noon, Zac B. Sarian will talk on growing exotic fruit trees. In the afternoon, BMB-DENR will discuss CITES and non-CITES plants. On Monday, Romeo Bello Marbella Jr. will talk on Grape Growing Primer: Philippine Experience.

(Feature) Why Novaliches Diocese is ‘unique and different’ from other PHL bishoprics

By Severino C. Samonte [(PNA), FPV/SCS/EBP]

MANILA (PNA) – Among the various dioceses of the Ecclesiastical Province of Manila headed by Archbishop Luis Antonio G. Cardinal Tagle, the 15-year-old and populous Roman Catholic Diocese of Novaliches in the northernmost fringes of Metro Manila can be considered the most unique.

Here’s why: Its territorial jurisdiction covers big portions of two premier cities which have their own dioceses – Quezon City and Caloocan City. It includes three congressional districts of Quezon City – Districts 2, 5 and 6 – and 23 barangays in North Caloocan City.

The current head of the Novaliches Diocese is Bishop Antonio G. Tobias. Its present vicar general is Rev. Fr. Antonio E. Labiao Jr.

The original town of Novaliches -- where its 12 vicariates and over 60 parishes are located – has been erased from the Philippine map for over a century ago and is now divided between Quezon City and Caloocan City.

As a result, people looking at the national map of the Philippines can no longer see any trace of the original Novaliches town, very much unlike the other dioceses of the Ecclesiastical Province of Manila which also includes the Dioceses of Cubao, Pasig, Paranaque, Caloocan, Antipolo, Imus, San Pablo, Malolos, the Apostolic Vicariates of Puerto Princesa and Taytay, and the Military Ordinariate of the Philippines.

At present, half of the Diocese of Novaliches can actually be seen as portion of the official map of Quezon City; the other half remaining with Caloocan.

What is more, about half of what is supposed to be the territory of the Caloocan Diocese belongs to the Diocese of Novaliches, having been part of the original town.

Meanwhile, the Diocese of Caloocan also cover the adjacent cities of Malabon and Navotas.

It is estimated that the Novaliches Diocese accounts for at least half of the more than 2.93 million people of Quezon City and about the same ratio of the population of 1.58 million of Caloocan City.

Background on the creation of the Diocese of Novaliches.

The Diocese of Novaliches was established on Dec. 7, 2002, and was canonically erected on Jan. 16, 2003 from its ecclesiastical province, the Archdiocese of Manila, by Pope John Paul II.

It was created by the Vatican along with the Dioceses of Cubao, Pasig and Paranaque during the time of the late Manila Archbishop Jaime L. Cardinal Sin.

The Diocese of Paranaque, established on Dec. 7, 2002, covers the adjacent cities of Paranaque, Las Pinas and Muntinlupa.

On the other hand, the Diocese of Cubao, created on June 28, 2003, comprises the southern half of Quezon City, specifically Districts 1, 3 and 4.

The Diocese of Pasig, established also in 2003, covers the cities of Pasig and Taguig as well as the town of Pateros.

At present, the Manila Archdiocese juridically covers the cities of Manila, Makati, Mandaluyong, San Juan and Pasay as well as the Our Lady of EDSA Shrine in Quezon City.

The first head of the Novaliches Diocese was Bishop Teodoro C. Bacani Jr. He became Bishop Emeritus of Novaliches upon his replacement by Bishop Tobias,

The seat of the diocese, which is dedicated to Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, is located at Regalado Avenue Extension, Fairview, Novaliches. It has a total land area of 138 square kilometers .

The boundaries of the Novaliches Diocese are as follows: San Jose Del Monte City and Marilao town in Bulacan on the North; Marikina City and the towns of Rodriguez (formerly Montalban) and San Mateo in Rizal on the East; Tandang Sore Avenue and Mactan Avenue in Diliman, Quezon City on the South; and Caloocan City-South and Valenzuela City on the West.

The dozen vicariates of the diocese are the:

Vicariate of Christ the King, Vicariate of Our Lady of Lourdes, Vicariate of Sto. Nino, Vicariate of the Holy Cross, Vicariate of Ascension of Our Lord, Vicariate of Good Shepherd, Vicariate of Holy Spirit, Vicariate of Our Lady of Mercy, Vicariate of San Bartolome, Vicariate of San Isidro Labrador, Vicariate of Saint St. Peter, and Vicariate of Ina ng Lupang Pangako.

On-line police and health clearances, soon in QC

(QC PAISO/RJB/SDL/PIA-NCR)

QUEZON CITY, Jan. 18 (PIA)--Police and health clearances in Quezon City may soon be secured on-line.

This, after the Quezon City Council has approved two resolutions providing for the adoption of an on-line application and documents verification system in the issuance of police and health clearance in the city.

The move, designed to simplify the process of securing police and health clearance from the QC Police District and the QC Health Department, respectively, also highlights the city government’s continuing effort to harnessing new technologies and systems to provide convenience to those who will be availing of city services.

As provided under both resolutions, the QCPD and the QCHD will be coordinating closely with the QC Information Technology Development Office (QCITDO) as to the requirements need for systems development.

Councilor Alexis Herrera, principal author of the resolution said the measure aims to lessen the processing time for both the police and health clearances.

Traditionally, processing time for securing a police clearance takes about a day while a health clearance takes about two days to process.

QC to build halfway house for abandoned senior citizens

(PAISO QC/RJB/SDL/PIA-NCR)

QUEZON CITY, Jan. 17 (PIA)—The Quezon City government is set to build a halfway house for senior citizens who have been abandoned and neglected by their families.

The move highlights the city government’s continuing effort to provide a comprehensive health care and rehabilitation program for senior citizens, especially for those who have been abandoned and homeless.

The Office of Senior Citizens Affairs and the Social Services Development Department, who will manage the institution, will help neglected senior citizens by contacting their relatives and arrange their official transfer to the halfway house for permanent custody and care.

As provided for under the ordinance, which shall be known as the “Quezon City Senior Citizens’ Shelter Home Ordinance of 2016,” no senior citizen shall be admitted or confined in the temporary QC shelter home for a period longer than two weeks.

A senior citizen who shall remain unfetched by relatives within the prescribed period, shall be referred to appropriate institutions, including the Kalinga Day Center for the Elderly.

Referrals for transfer shall be coordinated with the city’s Social Services Development Department (SSDD), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Home for the Aged and other national and local agencies concerned.

Meanwhile, the Office for Senior Citizens Affairs (OSCA), SSDD and other concerned agencies are enjoined to participate in the crafting of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the newly-approved ordinance, which was principally authored by Councilor Roger Juan,

To date, the Quezon City government is the first local government unit in the country providing a budget allocation of at least one percent of its annual budget for programs that will redound to the benefit of senior citizens in the city.

The city government is eyeing an unutilized property as site for the soon-to-be-constructed facility, which will also be funded by the city.

AFP gives PHP600-K scholarship to 12 Advance ROTC cadets

(PNA), CVL/PFN

MANILA (PNA) -- A total of 12 cadets belonging to the Advance Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) were given PHP600,000 worth of scholarship incentives by the Armed Forces of the Philippines last January 12.

Col. Edgard Arevalo, AFP public affairs office chief, said the awarding of the cheques to the 12 beneficiaries took place at the Hall of Flags, General Headquarters (GHQ) Building in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.

“The recipients, who come from different areas in Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao and the National Capital Region, each received a cheque worth PHP50,000. This is part of the scholarship incentives granted to deserving cadets undergoing the Advance ROTC program nationwide,” he added.

Lt. Gen. Salvador Melchor Mison Jr., AFP vice chief-of-staff, personally handed the cheques to the 12 cadets.

Arevalo said the Reserve Command Selection Boards of the Philippine Army, Philippine Air Force, and Philippine Navy pre-selected and endorsed the names of the scholarship grantees.

These recommendations were subsequently reviewed and validated by the GHQ Review and Validation Board.

The awardees recommended by the Army were C/Capt. Edison S. Aban, C/Lt. Col. Naomilyn C. Fernandez, C/1st Lt. Nikko A. Montealegre, and C/Capt. Kassandra Marie A. Custodio.

The Air Force meanwhile endorsed C/Lt. Col. Paul Aldrenn D. Torralba, C/Lt.Col. Bernadette Grace B. Magbanua, C/Capt. Jonabel N. Grande, and C/Capt. Aices Zieh Ghierl Canla-on.

The Navy on the other hand recommended M/Cmdr. Joseph A Lopez, C/Lt. Col. Sheila Mae N. Bajan, C/Maj. Rodeth S. Montañez, and C/Maj. Ronnel B. Carullo.

The AFP has been awarding scholarship assistance to outstanding Advance ROTC Cadets since 2006 through the Chief-of-Staff, AFP Scholarship Grant.

The program is being managed by the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Reservist and Retiree Affairs.

“The AFP continuously motivates and recruits the best qualified and responsible students to join the ROTC Corps of Cadets. We hope that through the assistance that we are providing, more ROTC cadets will eventually enter the regular service and become commissioned officers of the AFP,” AFP chief-of-staff, Gen. Eduardo Año stressed.

“The AFP firmly believes that the ROTC Program is essential in instilling discipline and leadership among the youth. It also develops their sense of nationalism and patriotism that inspires them to render services to the nation and the people, especially in humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations,” he added.

MMDA opening access road in QC to reduce queue to malls

By Jovic Yee (Philippine Daily Inquirer)

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is set to open next month an access road in Quezon City that would help ease congestion on a section of Edsa where three malls are located.

MMDA officer in charge and general manager Tim Orbos explained that by using a two-lane road on Ayala Land’s Vertis North property along Edsa’s northbound lane, motorists would no longer need to queue along the highway to enter Landmark and Trinoma.

At present, Orbos said, the long line of vehicles going to these malls usually extends all the way to the Edsa-Quezon Avenue intersection, causing a gridlock. ADVERTISEMENT

In a recent meeting with Ayala Land officials, Orbos said that once the company has completed improvements on the access road, light vehicles, except UV Express vans, can use it by February.

To also improve traffic flow along North Avenue, the MMDA will open a U-turn slot at the median or center island near Veterans Memorial Medical Center, so that motorists going to Quezon Memorial Circle need not go all the way to the Mindanao Avenue intersection.

Earlier, the MMDA also opened an access road linking Edsa and Jupiter Street in Makati, and two more at Veterans and on the Naval Station property in Taguig.

DOLE, DSWD team up against child labor

By Julie M. Aurelio (JMA/ATM, Philippine Daily Inquirer)

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) have teamed up to ensure a Philippines free of child labor by 2025.

The two agencies joined forces in its “Makiisa para sa #1MBatangMalaya: We are one with the children in ending child labor” to raise public awareness and get rid of child labor in the country.

In particular, the DOLE and the DSWD will be working together on covergence programs to eliminate the prevalent but illegal practice. ADVERTISEMENT

“Eliminating child labor is a real challenge that requires collective action and close cooperation of government agencies, civil society organizations, local government units, media, parents and the children themselves,” said Labor Undersecretary Joel Maglunsod.

The partnership was launched in Quezon City on Thursday. Maglungsod noted that child workers are compelled to help augment their families’ meager income by engaging in hazardous work.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority’s 2011 Survey on Children, there are 2.1 million child laborers in the Philippines.

The convergence projects of the DSWD and the DOLE to combat child labor are:

• The CARING Gold Project of the International Labor Organization and BanToxics, which calls for the reduction of child labor and improve working conditions in gold mining
• The Strategic Help Desks for Information, Education, Livelihood and other Developmental Interventions (SHIELD) against Child Labor
• The Module on Child Labor for the Family Development Sessions of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) of the DSWD

The ILO donated $ 2 million for the CARING Gold project, which will be initially pilot tested in mining areas in Camarines Norte and South Cotobato.

On the other hand, the SHIELD project will be initially pilot tested in six local government units in Quezon, Camarines Norte and Ormoc, Leyte in the first half of 2017.

These are all aligned with both the Philippine Program Against Child Labor 2017-2022, which aims to rescue one million children from child labor, and the Sustainable Development Goals that calls for the end of child labor by 2025.

As the chair of the National Child Labor Committee, the DOLE vowed to intensify its campaign against child labor and to back its partners in curbing child labor.

The DOLE noted that the worst forms of child labor include exposure of children to physical and psychological abuse; forced domestic work and commercial sexual exploitation; and offering children for illicit activities like drug ingand production.

Maglungsod assured that the two agencies would work together to attain a child labor-free Philippines and to make poor households understand the child labor issue.

For her part, DSWD Metro Manila Director Ma. Alicia Bonoan stressed the need to urgently address the problem, lest more children be trapped in child labor and in backbreaking, hazardous work.

Khalid Hassan, director of the International Labor Organization country office for the Philippines, noted that child labor is complex and deeply rooted in poverty.

“Children suffer and risk their health or even their lives to work for their family’s survival. Ending child labour requires strong commitment and collective effort,” he said.

QC grants special permits to 4 Cubao bus terminals

By Rio N. Araja

The Quezon City Council has granted special use permits to four provincial bus terminals after their companies complied with the necessary regulatory requirements prescribed by the city government.

First North Luzon Transport Inc., Bataan Transit Co., Inc., Five Star and Luzon Cisco Transport Inc., which all have terminals at the Cubao area, were granted permits.

Their operators also complied with the requirements prescribed by the barangay council in Cubao related to running a bus terminal, garage station and motorpool in the city.

As required in Quezon City, bus terminals must be equipped with closed circuit television surveillance systems, a ticketing and shipping booth, well-maintained toilets, sleeping quarters, baggage area and parking area.

Transport terminals are among those business establishments that require a special use permit to operate. These permits are issued subject to an authorization from the City Council through a resolution.

The QC Council also authorized a special use permit to City Bus Inc., located at Barangay Sta. Monica in Novaliches.

DPWH earmarks Php 2.8B for road widening project in Quezon City

By Eric Tipan

DPWH to widen 9-km Gen. Luis Malinis Road

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is set to improve the road that connects old Novaliches Poblacion in Quezon City with portions of North Caloocan and Valenzuela City as part of the Duterte administration’s ‘Golden Age of Infrastructure’ program.

The nine-kilometer long Gen. Luis Malinis Road, previously known as the old Novaliches-Polo Road, will be widened and upgraded with a budget of Php 2.8 billion.

As the only direct link from MacArthur Highway in Barangay Malinta, Valenzuela City to the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and Quirino Highway, it is used by all kinds of vehicles - buses, passenger jeepneys, taxicabs, trucks, motorcycles and tricycles – 24 hours a day.

Nine big and populated barangays with numerous subdivisions, manufacturing plants, schools, shopping malls, banks, drug distribution outlets and residential houses lie along its stretch, which makes overall travel speed along the very slow.

As a designated route of cargo trucks, the road does not observe any truck ban, which adds to further traffic congestion.

The project aims to expand the carriageways of the road network, rehabilitate three short bridges along it in Malinta, Maysan and Paso de Blas and increase travel time along the nine-kilometer road from the present one hour and thirty minutes.

Construction is expected to start January 2018 and end one year later.

PN to sign recruitment MOA with 3 schools, Manila, Quezon City LGUs

(PNA), LGI/PFN

MANILA, Jan. 11 (PNA) -- As more modern ships are acquired and commissioned, the Philippine Navy (PN) is needing more and more qualified men and women to man these vessels so vital in protecting the country's vast waters.

In line with this, the PN will sign memorandum of agreement (MOA) with Adamson University, Mapua Institute of Technology, Technical University of the Philippines, and the local governments of Manila and Quezon City this Jan. 12 to beef up its recruitment efforts.

PN spokesperson Capt. Lued Lincuna said the MOA will formalize the PN's collaboration efforts with these institutions and ensure the naval force will have a vast manpower pool for its crewing needs.

Newly-acquired ships of the PN are the BRP Andres Bonifacio (FF-17), BRP Tarlac (LD-601) and the BRP Gregorio Velasquez (AGR-702) and the five "Balikpapan" landing craft heavies.

Expected to arrive in the near future are the BRP Davao Del Sur (LD-602), the sister ship of BRP Tarlac, and the two-missile-armed frigates which will be constructed by South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries.

The MOA signing will be held at PN headquarters in Roxas Boulevard, Manila.

Expected in the 9 a.m. signing ceremonies are Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista, the presidents of the above-mentioned schools and PN flag-officer-in-command Vice Admiral Ronald Joseph S. Mercado.

QC Police, Muslim leaders sign covenant

(QC PAISO/RJB/SDL/PIA-NCR)

QUEZON CITY, Jan. 10 (PIA)--Leaders of the Muslim community in Barangay Culiat have signed a peace covenant with the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) to ensure a closer working relationship in maintaining peace and order in the area, especially in the fight against illegal drugs.

The covenant enjoins all parties to ensure 24/7 security and protection inside and within the periphery of the Salaam Compound, with the QCPD deploying at least 10 policemen and creating a police detachment in the area.

QCPD’s peacekeeping efforts will be beefed up by civilian volunteers duly endorsed by community leaders.

Mayor Herbert Bautista, in a statement, underscored the need for Muslim communities to become more organized.

Aside from the Muslim communities at Salaam Compound, Mayor Bautista also underscored the need to expand the covenant with other Muslim communities in the city, including Batasan, Payatas and Novaliches.

“Dapat puntahan din natin ang ibang Muslim communities sa lungsod,” the Mayor said.

The covenant signing, signed at Monday’s flag-raising ceremony at QC Hall, also stipulated the need to provide all residents of Salaam Compound with identification cards for monitoring purposes.

Aside from the adoption of an ID system, all vehicles owned by residents of Salaam Compound will be issued passes to avoid the entry of unwanted persons and contrabands.

The covenant also called for the surrender of illegal firearms and ammunitions to the police.

The covenant also underscored the need to conduct regular dialogues between the police and Muslim leaders to address pressing issues as Muslim leaders and the police have also agreed to cooperate in times of calamities, whether natural or man-made.

AFP launches Development Support and Security Plan 'Kapayapaan'

(PNA), LGI/PFN

MANILA (PNA) -- As Internal Peace and Security Plan "Bayanihan" expired last Dec. 31, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) launched Friday Development Support and Security Plan "Kapayapaan".

The launching took place during the Department of National Defense (DND)'s 1st Quarter 2017 Command Conference held at Tejeros Hall of the AFP Commissioned Officers Club in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.

"Bayanihan" was first implemented in Dec. 22, 2010. It aims to “provide the strategic guidance in the performance of (the AFP’s) mandated functions of protecting the state and the people."

Col. Edgard A. Arevalo, AFP public affairs office chief, said top military field commanders, major service commanders, wide support and separate unit commanders, and key staff of the military were in attendance.

The event was presided by DND Secretary Secretary Delfin Lorenzana.

“The military top brass and panel chairperson of government implementing panel for Bangsamoro, and peace accords were invited to attend the caucus,” Arevalo said.

“It was in that venue that the new AFP campaign plan officially named Development Support and Security Plan Kapayapaan — the one that replaces IPSP Bayanihan that expired on Dec. 31, 2016 — was presented to the conferees. The document will serve as the ’blueprint’ as to how the AFP shall conduct its campaigns," he added.

Arevalo said the highlight of the conference was the issuance of AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Eduardo Año's command guidance which called for the destruction of all terrorist and lawless groups in the country.

"He was clear, concise, and direct in his pronouncement that the top priority of the AFP under his leadership shall be the destruction of the terrorist groups of the Abu Sayyaf Group , Maute Group, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, and other foreign and local terrorist groups,” he added.

To achieve this, stakeholder engagement aside from focused military operations are needed.

"Apart from the conduct of focused combat operations employing the wherewithals of the AFP, I desire that we enhance stakeholder engagement to ensure robust participation of the religious sector and local government," Arevalo quoted the AFP chief as saying.

“From our end, I want everyone here to exercise the highest degree of Commandership. After all, the most important element of combat power is Leadership. Do and give your best and together we will create a winning team and get the job done," he added.

“We will give priority to frontline units in the assignment of the best Officers, Enlisted Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors, and Marines — our most important resource. And as such, we must take care of them. While we endeavour to give them the fighting edge, it is as essential that we increase their survivability rate,” Año stressed.

“We will, as we must, look at the welfare of our men —and loved ones—especially those who were combat casualties. Expedite the processing of the benefits due them; streamline the process and rationalize the requirements for promotion, schooling, and awards as well was disposition of cases," the AFP chief added.

And during his watch, Año said the AFP will be fully committed to the primacy of the peace process guided by the President Rodrigo Duterte's roadmap to peace.

The military will support fully the government’s war on drugs and shall extend full support to the Philippine National Police and other law enforcement agencies both in terms of personnel and intelligence.

"Finally, I say there is no letter ‘I’ in the word ‘TEAM’. We shall all aspire for the collective accomplishment above individual fulfillment. Again, I urge the men and women of the AFP to work with me as we continue our journey together with our actions embed with the AFP Core Values of Honor, Service, and Patriotism,” Año said.

New Payment Convenience for January 2017: One-time assessment and payment for business tax and fire safety inspection certificate

(Quezon City Government Official Website)

Business taxpayers in Quezon City will be happy to note that they no longer have to queue separately for paying their Fire Safety Inspection Certificates.

An arrangement between the Quezon City Government and the QC Bureau of Fire has been made especially for the January 2017 business tax-paying period: Assessments for the COMMUNITY TAX 2017 and the FIRE SAFETY INSPECTION FEE (FSIF) for 2017 will already be incorporated in a one-time assessment in the taxpayers’ Tax Bill. The FSIF will be presented as a distinct item in the Tax Bill.

There will be no need for separate payment of FSIF at the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP). This convenience is available for taxpayers for the whole month of January 2017. It will be the QC-LGU that will remit the payments on a regular basis to the BFP.

Those businesses whose Fire Safety Inspection Certificates (FSIC) have expired or about to expire at the time of business permit renewal will be given 30 days to see to the renewal of their certificates; otherwise, their business permits will be automatically revoked.

With the single billing for the business tax and the FSIF, what QC taxpayers need to do is to present their tax bill at the BFP, so that they can be scheduled for inspection. Inspection schedules will be based on the expiry dates of the Fire Safety Inspection Certificates.

In Quezon City, FSICs have a 365-day validity period; thus, these have different expiry dates, and business owners have one-year to see to it that their FSICs remain current.

Quezon City Commemorates the 205th Birth Anniversary of Melchora "Tandang Sora" Aquino

(Quezon City Government Official Website)

The Quezon City Government Commemorated the 205th Birth Anniversary of Melchora “Tandang Sora” Aquino in cooperation with the National Historical Commission of the Philippines on January 16, 2017. Flag raising and wreath laying ceremonies were conducted at the Tandang Sora National Shrine in Banlat Road, Barangay Tandang Sora.

During the Commemoration Ceremonies, the Quezon City Government accorded Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales with the 2017 Tandang Sora Award. The Tandang Sora Award is given as recognition to women who exemplify the ideals and principles of Melchora Aquino, the Grand Old Lady of the Katipunan.

Mayor Herbert Bautista conferred to Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales the Tandang Sora Award in recognition of her standfast integrity in pursuing erring government officers and employees. Ombudsman Carpio Morales has been a recipient of several awards during her term as a Justice of the Supreme Court, she was previously awarded by the Quezon City Government as one of the “Ten Most Outstanding Citizens for 2013.” She was also hailed by the UP Alumni Association with the Outstanding Award in Championing Justice/Judiciary “for delivering justice with courage and untrammeled integrity.” These were the qualities that garnered Ombudsman Carpio Morales the Tandang Sora award.

QC extends tax payment hour

(QC PAISO/RJB/SDL/PIA-NCR)

QUEZON CITY, Jan. 6 (PIA) -- Mayor Herbert Bautista has called on the city’s taxpayers, especially those renewing their business permits and licenses, to take advantage of the extended business days and hours in city hall offices involved in tax assessment and payments.

The extended working days and hours that began January 3 would mean that all revenue-generating offices at city hall will be from 8 a.m. and even extend beyond 5 p.m. on weekdays. Offices will also be open on Saturdays and Sundays for as long as there are taxpayers to be served.

The deadline for tax payments without penalty, as provided under the Local Government Code, is on January 20.

Meanwhile, Acting City Treasurer Ruby Rosa Guevarra reported that the treasurer’s office has managed to collect P19,453,015,497.90 in gross revenues in 2016. The amount posted by the city represents an increase of P2,071,449.279.08 in the city’s general fund compared to the same period in 2015.

Based on the December 29, 2016 collection report submitted by the City Treasurer’s Office, QC posted a budget surplus of P679,736,814.35 in 2016.

Business taxes, which serve as the city’s major revenue source, constitute the bulk of the collection, with P8,300,170,082.50. The amount represents an increase of P744,954,705.42 compared to the same period last year.

The city government managed to collect about P1,923,621,425.41 in real property taxes during the period.

Notable increases were also reported in the collection of other regulatory and miscellaneous fees.

DA, BFAR, PFDA prepare plan to sell fish in remote areas

(DA-AFID, DA-OSEC)

The Bureau of Fisheries and the Philippine Fishports Development Authority, two agencies of government which are under the Department of Agriculture, have come up with a nationwide program to facilitate the distribution of fish straight from the fish ports to the remote towns of the country.

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said the program called “Isda sa Kabukiran” or Fish in the Rural Areas would entail the direct involvement of the BFAR and the PFDA in a distribution system wherein the fishing communities and fishermen would be organised and provided with ice-making and cold storage facilities.

From the cold storage facilities, fish would then be brought by fish cars owned by the fishermen’s associations to strategic locations in the interior areas called the Provincial Fish Distribution Centers.

The Centers would be equipped with cold storage and ice-making facilities where fish vendors could buy wholesale for resale in the wet markets.

In other more remote areas, a municipal Fish Distribution Center could also be set up where local vendors could also buy wholesale at a lower price.

Piñol noted that in many fishing grounds, up to 40% of the fish catch is lost to spoilage simply because there are no cold storage or ice-making facilities.

While ordinary fish like “tamban” or sardines is sold for as low as P20 to P25 per kilo in many fishing communities, many poor families living in the mountains and interior towns and villages could not buy fish.

Under the present system, private fish traders who own fish cars buy from the fish consolidators in the fish ports.

They would then bring the fish supply to the interior towns but by then the price would already be too high mainly because of the profit earned by the fish consolidator and the kilos of fish the fish cars throw into the police and military checkpoints along the route.

By the time, the P25-per-kilo “tamban” reaches the interior areas, the price would have already breached P200 per kilo.

PFDA General Manager Glen Pangapalan proposed the system to Secretary Piñol, who approved it as it fits President Duterte’s concept of a National Food Supply Positioning and Distribution System. DA Undersecretary Eduardo Gongona, BFAR Director, was immediately directed to coordinate with the PFDA for the immediate implementation of this program for 2017.

“Isda sa Kabukiran” now stands as one of the major innovations in the fishing industry which would ensure that our fishermen would earn more from their labor, the DA Secretary said.

It would ensure the availability of low-cost fish in the countryside where farmers and farm workers also contribute to President Duterte’s commitment of “Available and Affordable Food,” Piñol said.

DSWD’s Crisis Intervention Unit gets P1B funding

(DSWD/RJB/LFB/PIA-NCR)

QUEZON CITY, Jan. 4 (PIA) -- The Department of Social Welfare Development’s s (DSWD) Crisis Intervention Unit (CIU) where the Medicine Assistance Program (MAP) is lodged will be getting a one billion funding as pronounced by President Rodrigo Duterte.

DSWD Secretary Judy Taguiwalo said that the President has given her instruction to formulate guidelines for the program implementation, and administer it immediately.

“Pres. Duterte, is very much aware of the high costs of medicines and the numerous indigent patients who cannot afford to buy prescription drugs. The P1 billion from the President’s Social Fund will enable these patients to access badly-needed medicines,” Taguiwalo added.

The Secretary recently released Memorandum Circle No. 16 which mobilizes DSWD Field Offices III, VI, VII, XI and the National Capital Region (NCR) to provide medicine assistance to indigent patients/clients, pending Malacanang’s fund transfer.

The DSWD’s medicine assistance program funded under the Pres. P1 billion fund aims to provide assistance to indigent Filipinos so they can immediately secure much needed prescription medicines.

The beneficiaries of the program are Filipinos who seek assistance from a DSWD office to access prescription medicine. The priorities are 1) families/individuals who are indigent, vulnerable, disadvantaged or those in the informal sector and poor based on the DSWD Listahanan; 2) government employees and contract of services workers; and 3) those who are facing crisis situations as determined by DSWD social workers.

The Secretary stressed that prescription medicines of drug dependents undergoing treatment/rehabilitation are not covered by the program. A separate program is being created for them,” she said.

The DSWD’s Crisis Intervention Unit (CIU), a special unit of the Department that serves as an action center that immediately responds to the needs of individuals and families in crisis situations facilitate the release of the medical assistance and located at the Central office (CO), FO, and/or Satellite Offices in the Provinces.

“The DSWD has yet to receive the P1 billion from Malacanang, but we are willing to foot the bill in the meantime so Filipinos who need immediate prescription medicines can access them ASAP. As soon as the fund is available, the DSWD will oversee and manage it and the program. Five percent of the fund will be used for project management,” the Secretary explained.

She also clarified that beneficiaries will not receive any cash, but referral letters from the DSWD which beneficiaries will take to DSWD partner drugstores and hospital pharmacies.

Those who need medicine assistance should bring and submit to the closest CIU the needed original or certified true copy of the following documents: 1) clinical abstract/medical certificate with full name, signature and license number of the attending physician (issued not later than three months);

2) The doctor’s prescription with date and the name of the patient. The prescription should be signed by the attending physician with license number indicated);

3) Barangay certificate of indigence or Indigent Card issued by the medical social service of the hospital; and

4) Any valid ID of the client.

If the prescription costs P5,000 or less, confirmation by the doctor or his/her duly certified representative of the veracity of the prescription is sufficient for the DSWD to provide the assistance.

A social case study report is needed as a supporting document for assistance more than P5,000 and can be availed of only once within three months.

Taguiwalo also explained that the DSWD can establish partnerships with service providers to ensure that clients are efficiently and effectively assisted immediately. The DSWD can forge contracts or enter memorandum of agreement (MOA) with qualified service providers.

“As a safeguard, in no case will the implementation of the program be delegated and/or transferred to any kind of civil society organization (CSO) regardless of whether it’s a non-governmental organization or a people’s organization, “the Secretary emphasized.

DENR: Quezon City to host eco summit

By Rio N. Araja

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources has chosen Quezon City to host the third ecological solid waste management exhibition and environmental summit slated this month.

Mayor Herbert Bautista said Quezon City was chosen for taking the lead in solid waste management among the other local governments.

He said the event is part of the observance of zero-waste month, and will bring together leaders and practitioners in solid waste management, climate change, disaster risk prevention and mitigation and renewable energy in a bid to raise awareness on environmental protection, “especially among millennials.”

The event will be held from Jan. 26 to Jan. 29 at the Quezon Memorial Circle.

“What we will be doing is to encourage the participation of the so-called millennials in the event and gather their view regarding the current changes in the environment,” dodgie Osabel of the Environmental Management Bureau in the National Capital Region said.

Environment Secretary Gina Lopez and Senator Loren Legard are the invited speakers during the event jointly organized by the National Solid Waste Management Commission and DENR’s EMB-NCR in partnership with the city government through the Environmental Protection and Waste Management Department.

Quezon City has been credited for its adoption of strategies and initiatives that contributed to the protection of the environment against further degradation, apart from mitigating the impact of climate change.

Among of the city’s landmark initiatives were the passage of the green building ordinance and regulation of the use of plastic bags in malls, supermarkets, groceries, stores and other commercial establishments.

Bautista maintained that environment management will continue to remain a critical foundation for the city’s urban development strategies.

Workshop on Audio Description and Closed Captioning

(Manila Standard Showbitz)

The Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) and prime mover Deaf Blind Support Philippines, Inc. (DBSP), in cooperation with the National Council on Disability Affairs (NCDA), Philippine Blind Union (PBU), CALL Foundation of the Blind, American Audio Associates, LLC and Audio Description Project, ACB recently ushered in a three -day workshop in Audio Description (AD) and Closed Captioning (CC) for Media and the Arts. With expert Joel Snyder, PhD as resource person, the workshop aimed to intensify public awareness on the protection and promotion of human rights. It was also meant to empower the differently abled Filipino citizens who are visually impaired and hard of hearing to have equal access in media and arts through the power of AD and CC services.

MTRCB Chairperson Atty. Eugenio “Toto” Villareal along with DBSP President Edgardo “Bong” Garcia, led the introductory remarks at the Liezl S. Martinez Hall, MTRCB office in Quezon City.

According to Villareal, the workshop was but a confirmation of MTRCB’s continued cooperation that has already been going on between the two agencies.

He shared the timely introduction of AD and CC and how it was brought to the Philippines.

“We have started our initiative on promoting AD and CC through the project ‘Movies for the Blind and the Deaf’ with the full support of MTRCB, SM Cares and CALL Foundation of the Blind. However, the movie screenings held and will be shown in the coming months are presented in English language only, simply because we don’t have Filipino or Tagalog films with AD and CC [services]. So one of the objectives of this workshop, is to create a pool of potential [Filipino] audio transcribers and closed-captioners who can now work with movie and television producers in coming up with local Filipino products with AD and CC,” he said.

QC tops CMCI ranking index

By Rio N. Araja

QUEZON City is the “most competitive” city in the Philippines in 2016.

In its annual report to city residents, the city government said Quezon City is the most preferred location of the largest number of registered businesses in the country.

“When you do business in QC, you are automatically tapping into the resources and convenience of the biggest city in the most highly urbanized metropolis of the Philippines,” it said.

Quezon City was adjudged the “Most Competitive City in the Philippines,” topping 1,338 other local governments participating in the Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) in 2016.

Quezon City was followed by Manila, Makati City, Pasig City, Davao City, Cebu City, Cagayan de Oro City, General Santos City, Caloocan City and Muntinlupa City on the list.

It ranked in the top three on the three pillars of CMCI—infrastructure, government efficiency and economic dynamism.

“It is also the most-searched location in the country by those looking for residential and commercial areas, according to a popular online real-estate search portal that maintained property listings in 34 countries,” the city’s report read.

People preferred Quezon City over other highly urbanized places because of its value-for-money properties in easily accessible locations with multiple amenities nearby.

The city has 67,096 establishments, of which 48 percent were corporations, the report added.

In 2016, Quezon City also had the largest consumer population and largest in-city source of young and productive human resource compared to other cities in the CMCI.

Other plus points for business in the city were the city government’s comprehensive code for business incentives, multiple business districts, and international recognition of governance.

Last September, Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista partnered with 58 mayors, governors, prefects and other local officials from 24 countries to share perspectives, challenges and concerns in managing diversities and globalization.

The city government also pushed for the promotion of strong programs for Filipino migrants in putting up overseas Filipino workers’ desks at its Public Employment Service Office, employability through call center training, capacity-building of entrepreneurship, and multiple income-earning opportunities at home for persons with disabilities, expansion of public schools, and reduction of greenhouse gases.

Quezon City has an area of 161.126 square kilometers, with the most number of residents at 2,936,116 people among Metro Manila’s 16 cities and one municipality.

“It is a city of mostly young people. About 37 percent are 21 years or younger, and about 36 percent are aged 20 to 40,” the report read. “This provides businesses a large, in-residence, manpower pool.”

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