The National Electrification Administration (NEA) has joined hands with the prime movers of the second-year celebration of the Earth Hour, a global movement which calls for a united action on climate change and energy conservation.
On Saturday, 28, March 2009, one billion people in more than 1,000 cities and towns around the world in over 70 countries (including the Philippines) are expected to voluntarily turn-off their lights for ONE HOUR - from 8:30 PM to 9:30 PM.
The Energy family and the private sector are actively leading and participating this activity where ten million Filipinos are targeted to join. Such figure can be attained if each one of us can show support to this noble endeavor.
Earth Hour sends a strong message of hope and action to fight against global warming. For more information, visit http://www.earthhour.org and sign-up. (Daniel M. dela Cena, ANECO PIO/PIA)
Former rebels to receive livelihood assistance
Some 250 former rebels are expected to receive livelihood cash assistance from the government thru the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace Process (OPAPP) and the Provincial Social Integration Committee of Agusan del Sur as part of the Social Integration Program of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
The 250 former rebels are part of the 418 rebels who are residing in Agusan del Sur that signifies their intension to go back to the folds of the law before March 23, 2007. The areas of Sibagat, Bayugan and Esperanza are expected to have a greater number totaling to 150 FRs.
In March 3 this year, three OPAPP officials namely Allan Almoite, Joey Marcial Olpindo and Jaer Persigas with OPAPP consultant Ret. Gen. Belleza, convened the Provincial Social Integration Committee members and presented the process how the former rebels would receive the cash assistance.
PSWDO chief Josefina Bajade said her office have provided the OPAPP with the names of the 418 former rebels that they have registered and are now subject for validation by the 402nd Brigade and 26th IB of the army under the command of Col. Emiliano Gupana, thru Capt. Reynald Romel Goce and Col. Andres Centino respectively.
“In fact, last Friday, some 50 registered former rebels visited the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office and asked for the details of the process how they can avail of the government program”, Mrs. Bajade said.
Mrs. Bajade said the cash assistance that the former rebels will receive is the answer to her prayers in order to show that the government is sincere in obtaining lasting peace.
“Together with other agencies and stakeholders, we risked our lives in order to negotiate with these former rebels to go back to the folds of the law. Now our efforts paid off because we can concretely show our sincerity to help these former rebels to live peacefully and be integrated back to the society with the cash assistance that they will receive”, Mrs. Bajade added.
Each rebel will receive P20,000 cash. If they can organize themselves into cooperative, the Provincial Cooperative Office under Dexter Bajade is very willing and open to assist them and organize themselves into a cooperative. TESDA on the other hand offered technical trainings in order that these former rebels will be equipped with skills they needed to start a new livelihood project.
“We in the provincial government have done so many things in order to help the former rebels in their quest for new life. During the terms of my brother, former Governor Eddiebong Plaza, the provincial government has acquired parcels of lands in New Visayas for the relocation site of the FRs. Presently, a group of FRs with 22 members and their families are occupying the relocation area. We provided them with raw houses and subsidized their food and other needs for six months, and provided them with farm equipments like hand tractors and thresher, and carabaos to start their chosen livelihood program which is farming. They have eight hectares of rice fields to cultivate as their communal farm. Now, they enjoy a peaceful life”, Gov. Maria Valentina Plaza said.
According to Mrs. Bajade, they have also extended several livelihood programs to other areas aside from the relocation site in New Visayas.
“In sitio Gacub, Prosperidad, 2 former rebel groups were also extended livelihood assistance, from farm equipments to tree plantation, by the National Unification and Development Program (NUDP) and the provincial government, Presently, they live a normal and peaceful life”, Mrs. Bajade added.
The distribution of the cash assistance to the former rebels is expected to take place on March 24. According to Mrs. Bajade, her office is now finalizing the venue since the facilities at the Government Center in Patin-ay, Prosperidad will be occupied by the participants of the Regional meet slated on March 23-27. (Dave M. Suyao, PIA-Agusan del Sur)
RDC-SDC creates Reg’l EFA committee
BUTUAN CITY (19 March) – The Regional Development Council-Social Development Committee (RDC-SDC) created recently the Regional Education For All (EFA) Committee (REC).
During the first quarterly meeting held at the Conference Room of the Department of Education (DepEd)-Caraga Regional Office, RDC-SDC unanimously chosen the first course of action in setting up the REC which states that if the Regional Coordinating Body compliments the National Education For All Committee (NEC) in policy-making and program review, the regional body chould have the same composition and function as its national counterpart.
Members of the Caraga Regional Development Council-Social Development Committee (RDC-SDC) converged recently to discuss issues pertaining to regional development in Caraga. The first quarterly meeting was held at DepEd-Caraga Conference Room in Butuan City. (Robert E. Roperos, PIA-13)In addition, the council adopted that a REC should hence be organized as a subcommittee of the RDC-SDC with the DepEd Regional Office as Chair and secretariat.
The Education for All (EFA) program, anchored on the World Declaration on EFA in Jomtein, Thailand in 1990 and the Daker Framework of Action in 2000, is an international commitment which compels all nations to rally on “the right of all people to education”.
EFA aims to provide basic competencies to everyone to achieve the functional literacy for all. Among the component outcomes in achieving EFA goals include: a) universal coverage of out-of-school youths and adults in the provision of basic learning needs. All persons who failed to acquire the essential competence to be functionally literate should be made functionally literate in their native tongue, in Filipino and in English; b) universal school participation and elimination of drop-pouts and repition in the first three grades. All children aged six should enter school ready to learn and prepared to achieve the required competencies for Grades 1 to 3 instruction; c) universal completion of the full cycle of basic education schooling with satisfactory achievement levels by all at every grade or year; and d) total community commitment to attainment of basic education competencies for all. Every community should mobilize all its social, political, cultural and economic resources and capabilities to support the universal attainment of basic competencies.
The committee in the national level is composed of DepEd, Education Network, Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Philippine Information Agency (PIA), National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC), Union of Local Authorities in the Philippines (ULAP), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Health (DOH), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Office of Muslim Affairs (OMA), National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC), National Youth Commission (NYC), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Education Committee of the House of Representatives, Education Committee of the Senate, Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization-Regional Center for Educational Innovation and Technology, League of Corporate Foundations, and the UNESCO National Commission.
The nine urgent and critical tasks of the committee are as follows: 1) Make every school continuously improve its performance; 2) Expand early childhood care and development coverage to yield more EFA benefits; 3) Transform existing non-formal and informal learning options into a truly viable alternative learning system yielding more EFA benefits. 4) Get all teachers to continuously improve their teaching competencies; 5) Increase the cycle of schooling to reach 12 years of formal basic education; 6) Continue enrichment of curriculum development in the context of pillars of new functional literacy; 7) Provide adequate and stable public funding for country-wide attainment of EFA goals; 8) Create network of community-based groups for local attainment of EFA goals; and 9) Monitor progress in effort towards attainment of EFA goals.
With this development, the committee is bound to improve the education in Caraga Region especially that the region was the topnotcher in the 2008 National Achievement Test of DepEd. (Robert E. Roperos, PIA-13)
DOH identifies 27 training hospitals for NARS project in Caraga
BUTUAN CITY (19 March) – The Department of Health (DOH)-Caraga Region has identified 27 training hospitals region-wide for the beneficiaries of the Nurses Assigned in Rural Service (NARS) project.
During the first quarterly meeting of the Regional Development Council-Social Development Committee (RDC-SDC) held recently at the Conference Room of the Department of Education (DepEd) Caraga Regional Office here, DOH-Caraga Medical Officer Wilma Joji Yu said that the regional health department has already identified 27 hospitals in the five provinces of the region where the qualified nurses will be undergoing trainings.
Identified training hospitals in Agusan del Norte are the Agusan del Norte Provincial Hospital, Cabadbaran District Hospital, Kitcharao District Hospital, Jabonga Municipal Hospital, and Las Nieves Municipal Hospital.
In Agusan del Sur, six hospitals were identified by DOH, namely: D.O. Plaza Memorial Hospital, Bunawan District Hospital, Bayugan Community Hospital, Esperanza Medicare Community Hospital, La Paz Municipal Hospital, and Loreto Municipal Hospital.
For Surigao del Norte, identified training hospitals are: Del Carmen District Hospital, Loreto District Hospital, Pilar District Hospital, Placer District Hospital, Socorro District Hospital, Mainit Medicare Community Hospital, Sta. Monica Municipal Hospital, and Gigaquit Municipal Hospital.
Meanwhile, DOH has chosen Dinagat District Hospital to be the training center of the NARS beneficiaries in the Province of Dinagat Islands.
Surigao del Sur recipients, on the other hand will be trained in seven hospitals. These are the Hinatuan District Hospital, Lianga District Hospital, Madrid District Hospital, Marihatag District Hospital, Lingig Community Hospital, Cortes Municipal Hospital, and the San Miguel Community Hospital.
NARS project was launched by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on February 9, 2009 during the Multi-Sectoral Summit on “Joining Hands against the Global Crisis” in MalacaΓ±ang, Manila, whose aim is to mitigate the impact of the economic global crisis.
By this project, it is hoped to save and create as many jobs as possible and expand social protection which is part of the ten-point agenda of the Arroyo Administration. (Robert E. Roperos, PIA-13)
POLICE REPORTS
By PO3 Arturo Suganob Campania
Report on burning incident
On March 17, 2009 at 12:00 midnight at Barangay Maputi, Tagbina, Surigao del Sur, a poultry farm with 8,000 heads of chicken broiler was burned by unidentified armed men believed to be Communist Terrorists (CTs).
PNP elements from PPMG and Tagbina Municipal Police Station immediately proceeded to the area and conducted investigation. Police Regional Office 13 also directed Provincial Director of Surigao del Sur Provincial Police Office (PPO) to intensify patrol and coordinate with the armed forces to prevent occurrence of similar incidents. (PNP-13/ PIA-Caraga)
Recovery of stolen items
On March 17, 2009 at 11:00 in the morning at Purok-4, Barangay Ong yiu, Butuan City, joint elements of Theft and Robbery Unit (TRU) of Butuan City Police Office (BCPO) led by SPO4 Claros and elements of CIDG 13 led by PO2 Yaoyao, recovered one set of computer flat screen LENOVO Brand color black worth more or less Php 65,000.00 owned by a certain Jennifer Ramos, of legal age and resident of 8th Street, Guingona Subdivision, Butuan City from the possession of Mrs. Josephine Narvasa, 38 years old, married and resident of Purok-4, Barangay Ong Yiu, Butuan City.
Said item was sold to Mrs Narvasa in the amount of Php 8,000.00 by a certain Ian and Michael Mendoza. Said item now in the custody of CIDG 13 for proper disposition. (PNP-13/ PIA-Caraga)
PNP arrests wanted persons
On March 17, 2009 at 4:45 in the afternoon at Purok-1, Barangay Das-agan, San Francisco, Agusan del Sur, a certain Rolly Cabrera Degracia, 32 years old, married and resident of said place was apprehended by PNP elements of 143rd and 141st RMG Company led by SPO1 Lauro P Millor together with elements of 1402nd PPMG led by SPO1 Enosentes P Aclan.
Suspect was arrested by virtue of alias warrant of arrest (WOA) docketed under CC number 2000-99 for the crime of rape issued by Hon Judge Francisco F Maclang of Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 34, Cabadbaran City with no recommended bailbond.
Arrested person was subsequently turned over to the issuing court for proper disposition.
Also, around 5:00 in the afternoon at Brgy Puyat, Carmen, Surigao del Sur, PNP personnel of Carmen Municipal Police Station led by PSINSP Dominador A Plaza served the WOA to the suspects identified as Boloy Loyola and Loloy Loyola, both of legal age and residents of said place.
Suspects were arrested for the crime of robbery docketed under CC number 644 issued by Hon Judge Alfredo P Jalad of RTC Branch 41, Cantilan, Surigao del Sur with recommended bailbond amounting to Php 12,000.00 each.
Subject persons are now detained at Carmen Municipal Police Station for proper disposition.
Meanwhile, at 7:20 in the evening at San Juan, Barangay Punta, Nasipit, Agusan del Norte, Rolnado Rebuyon Gardoce, 35 years old, single and resident of said place was apprehended by PNP personnel of Nasipit Municipal Police Station led by PINSP Christian Rafols by virtue of alias WOA issued by Hon Judge Rosario Dabalos of RTC Branch 2, Hall of Justice, Libertad, Butuan City dated June 23, 2003 for the crime of robbery docketed under CC number 9947 with recommended bailbond amounting to Php 100,000.00.
Subject person now under the custody of Nasipit Municipal Police Station for proper disposition. (PNP-13/ PIA-Caraga)
