JYes Kontra Droga turns 1 on Sept. 3
By Nida Grace B. Tranquilan
TANDAG CITY, Surigao del Sur, Sept. 2 (PIA) --
The JohnnyYes or “JYes Kontra Droga” program of the Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse
Council (PADAC) in Surigao del Sur chaired by Gov. Johnny Pimentel turns one
year on Monday, September 3.
The simple celebration will start with a
"Fun Run for a Drug-Free Surigao del Sur" with Philippine Basketball
Association's (PBA) Vince Hizon and four other PBA players, to be followed by a
thanksgiving mass to be participated by local officials and employees of the
different government agencies, Community Social Organizations (CSOs),
stakeholders and students.
A motorcade will immediately follow and is set
to end at the social hall in the provincial capitol where the formal
anniversary program will be conducted with speakers from the Philippine Drug
Enforcement Agency (PDEA) to give advocacy campaign on the anti-illegal drug
operations of the government.
Also, a symposium will be held in two separate
venues here and to be participated by secondary students from Jacinto P. Elpa
National High School as well as students of Surigao del Sur State University
(SDSSU).
To wrap up the day's activity, a culmination
program is set in the evening with a "Konsiyerto ng Bayan"
(Provincial Concert) highlighting the activity will be held at the Vicente L.
Pimentel Sr. Boulevard.
Meanwhile, to strengthen the campaign against
illegal drugs, during the assessment and evaluation of program implemented,
members of PADAC identified that the council need to have their own funds for
the program implementation against illegal drugs. PADAC members is set to pass
a resolution requesting the legislative body to allocate funds for the council
in order to better implement the programs set which is aimed to uphold a
drug-free province. (NGBT/PIA-Surigao del Sur)
Butuan LGU partners with regional agencies for
Oplan logging: Likas, Lunas, Lakas implementation
By Maria Luisa Dianah Z. Generalao
BUTUAN CITY, Sept. 2 (PIA) -- The local
government here signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with several
government agencies to intensify campaign to stop illegal logging activities.
Butuan City Mayor Ferdinand M. Amante, Jr.
signed the MOU with the different participating line agencies represented by
its regional directors for Oplan Logging: Likas, Lunas, Lakas on August 23 at
the Indigay Hall of Almont Hotel’s Inland Resort.
The local government of Butuan LGU partners with
the regional offices of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of
Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Agriculture (DA),
Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), National Economic and Development
Authority (NEDA), along with the National Anti-Poverty Commision - Butuan and
the Department of Education – Butuan City Division to develop and implement a
continuous solution specifically designed to address the issue on displaced
timber workers and their affected families.
In his message, Mayor Amante shared that Butuan
LGU and the participating line agencies have previously undergone numerous
brainstorming sessions and workshops that have led to the identification of its
key activities and initial set of programs including time frame and budget
allocation, and agreements and commitments.
Mayor Amante added that DBM Sec. Butch Abad
already committed to fund the scholarship of 2,000 students from the affected
families. The tagging for the actual number of families affected is still
ongoing and will be completed on September 15.
President Aquino’s declaration of E.O. 23 or the
“Moratorium on the Cutting and Harvesting of Timber in the Natural and Residual
Forests and Creating the Anti-Illegal Logging Task Force” has since led to the
apprehension of tons of illegal logs floating in the Agusan River which
resulted to the closure of several wood processing plants in the city, subsequently
displacing timber workers and affecting their families.
Oplan Logging: Likas, Lunas, Lakas MOU Signing
was attended by Vice Mayor Lawrence Lemuel H. Fortun, Butuan LGU technical
staff, and the local media. (NCLM/LGU-BC/PIA-Caraga)
