Author: ASEAN Tribune

Iloilo City was awarded the most competitive highly urbanized city outside of the National Capital Region (NCR) and the fourth overall based on the 2023 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI). Local Economic Development and Investment Promotion (LEDIP) office head Velma Lao received the recognition together with project development officer for the city government, Lea Lara, during the Philippine Creative Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Congress by the Department of Trade and Industry-Competitiveness Bureau (DTI-CB) held at The Manila Hotel on Thursday. Lao said the award showed a significant leap of the city from the seventh position for the overall rank last year to the fourth this year. ‘Outside NCR, we are number one. We have our highest leap among five categories in economic dynamism and innovation,’ she said in a phone interview on Friday. Lao said the city was fourth in the two categories, a big leap from 12th rank last year. Based on this year’s CMCI, an annual ranking of P
hilippine cities and municipalities developed by the National Competitiveness Council, Iloilo City placed second for government efficiency, fifth in resiliency, and ninth in infrastructure. Rankings of cities and municipalities are based on the sum of their scores on five pillars: economic dynamism, government efficiency, infrastructure, resiliency and innovation. Lao said the award is proof that the city ‘can really compete’ and a big factor is good governance. In a separate interview, Mayor Jerry Treñas said he asked the LEDIP team to meet with professors at the University of the Philippines (UP) for guidance as he targets the city to bag even the third rank next year. Treñas said the award matters because investors look at the competitiveness of an area before they invest. ‘It is very important for us. It will ensure that we continue to be competitive,’ he added. Meanwhile, the municipality of Mina in Iloilo province ranked seventh in the overall rank of most competitive municipalities, belonging to the fi
fth to sixth class category.

Source: Philippines News Agency

Unfulfilled promises and hunger while on the run led 12 Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) rebels, including a ranking front official, to surrender to government forces in northern Negros Occidental in recent months. The surrenderers, who belonged to the Northern Negros Front (NNF), were from the cities of Escalante, Sagay, and San Carlos and the municipalities of Toboso and Calatrava. ‘This event is a milestone. It marks a step towards achieving lasting peace and stability in northern Negros,’ said Lt. Col. Arnel Calaoagan, commander of the Philippine Army’s 79th Infantry Battalion (IB). Calaoagan, together with local officials of the Philippine National Police (PNP), presented the surrenderers to Brig. Gen. Orlando Edralin, commander of 303rd Infantry Brigade, and representatives of concerned local government units (LGUs) in rites held at the battalion headquarters in Sagay City on Friday. They took their oaths of allegiance to the Philippine government before Escalante City l
egal officer Charo-Tupas Fajardo. The former rebels, who also turned over several firearms with ammunition, received cash assistance and sacks of rice from their respective LGUs, 79IB, PNP Special Action Force and Negros Occidental Provincial Mobile Force Company. Capt. Dan Carlo Samoza, civil-military operations officer of 79IB, said the former rebels are now in their custody while processing documents for their benefits under the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (ECLIP). ECLIP provides a financial package for immediate assistance, provision of the reintegration process, starting capital for livelihood, and remunerating surrendered firearms. Samoza said among those who surrendered were the secretary and squad leaders of the dismantled NNF, whose ages range from early 20s to 40s. Some stayed in the armed struggle for about a year, while others were communist rebels for over five years. ‘This is a result of the massive campaign operation of the 79IB together with the PNP to encourage them to su
rrender. There were promises made by the CPP-NPA that were never fulfilled. They also experienced hunger. They also realized they lost so much time to be with their families,’ Samoza said

Source: Philippines News Agency

In its almost 10 years of operation, Abra’s ‘Bahay Pag-asa’ continues to help children in conflict with the law (CICL) reform and have a second chance to make their lives better. Bahay Pag-asa head Jeanietess Brillantes described the center’s role in the society as a ‘home for second chance’ for youth offenders, many of whom have already returned to mainstream society after undergoing a ‘redirection’ process while at the facility. Abra’s Bahay Pag-asa, established in November 2013 and operated round-the-clock by 17 workers, is managed by the provincial government. In 2021, it was accredited by the Department of Social Welfare and Development. Located in Barangay Calaba, the dormitory is in a gated compound with an open gymnasium for sports activities and a wide garden for the residents to relax. ‘This is a 24-7 intervention center catering to CICL while waiting for the disposition of their legal cases. We redirect them to the right path,’ Brillantes said in an interview on Thursday. At least 159 CICLs have
been catered by the center since its establishment, with 11 current residents out of the 23 attended to since January this year. The current residents are aged 16 to 26 and were referred to the center when they were minors at the commission of the crime. ‘The others have returned to their homes after a court order,’ she said. Under Republic Act 9344 or the Juvenile Justice Act, criminal offenders below 18 years are not mixed with adult offenders in jail. Instead, they are entered in facilities where their young minds can recover and reform as they grow older, Brillantes said. ‘We make them realize that they are here not because they committed a crime but because they need to fix themselves and be good citizens. We provide different programs like psychosocial intervention, life skills training, skills training, and we compel them to continue with their education,’ she said. The center’s programs are aided by other government agencies, the religious sector, private organizations, and others who can help improve
the residents. She said education through the Alternative Learning System (ALS) program of the Department of Education is applied in the center with majority of the residents being out-of-school youths. ‘Education is their foundation for a better life when they go back to their community that is why we capitalize on this aside from the redirection process to lead them to the right path,’ she added. Aftercare to center residents Residents of the center later return home, making it relevant that the community, the local officials and more importantly, the families get involved. ‘We continue to monitor and supervise. We make sure that they are doing well and this is done in partnership with local social welfare officers, and the local government officials who give us a progress report about the child,’ Brillantes said. With the system in place and the collaboration of many sectors, the success stories continue to pile up since the center began taking up clients in 2013. ‘They are already employed and have establ
ished their families. Some have already finished a degree because they were able to catch up while in the center,’ she said. In addition, she noted that many of the former residents continue to make a connection with the center by updating the staff about their current lives. ‘They also visit when they are in Abra. I am very happy that I have a lot of success stories to share of the former residents whose lives were touched by the center,’ Brillantes said

Source: Philippines News Agency

The Ilocos Region has recorded 21 rabies cases from Jan. 1 to Sept. 16 this year, 110 percent higher than the 10 cases recorded in the same period last year, according to the Department of Health Center for Health Development in the Ilocos Region (DOH-CHD-1). In a phone interview on Friday, DOH-CHD-1 medical officer Rheuel Bobis said of the total cases, 10 were recorded in Ilocos Norte, two in Ilocos Sur, three in La Union, and six in Pangasinan. All the recorded cases resulted in deaths. ‘Owners have the responsibility to have their pets immunized against rabies yearly and also to provide other booster shots to keep them healthy and safe from viruses. May it be a cat or dog, they should be immunized to prevent rabies in case we get bitten by them. Most animal bites happen at home and some are bitten accidentally during playtime with their pets,’ Bobis said. Rabies is deadly as it has a 99 percent case fatality rate once a person gets bitten in critical areas such as the face, arms, or legs. However, it is
preventable through prompt and appropriate medical care and by getting anti-rabies vaccines. Among the measures being taken by the agency is the distribution of equine rabies immune globulin vials and purified chick embryo cells (for high-risk patients and postexposure protection against rabies) to various provincial health offices. In an interview, Pangasinan Provincial Veterinary Office officer-in-charge Arcely Robeniol said they have already vaccinated for free 129,628 pets against rabies in the province from Jan. 1 to Sept. 28. The provincial government has also castrated 1,499 pets and spayed 847 for free as part of their advocacy to control the population of stray cats and dogs. ‘If they are neutered or spayed, we could prevent stray animals in the streets and prevent possible rabies bites,’ she said. Robeniol said their other activities include deworming, consultation, vitamin administration and information and education campaign. ‘We do info drive campaign to pet owners and conduct mass vaccination as
well as augment the local government units with vaccines,’ she said

Source: Philippines News Agency

The chance of an explosive eruption by Mayon Volcano remains slim, the head of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) assured on Friday. Since June, Albay province’s Mayon has been on Alert Level 3, which means that a relatively high level of unrest and hazardous eruption within weeks or even days are possible. “The parameters we are observing now are not too elevated, compared to the parameters observed in July and August,” Phivolcs Director Teresito Bacolcol said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing. Bacolcol said two factors will be considered before lowering the volcano to Level 2 – when the flow of lava and occurrence of pyroclastic density current (PDC) stop. “That is the behavior of a volcano when there is an effusive eruption,” he said, adding that he expects these to continue for several weeks more. For the past 24 hours, Phivolcs recorded three PDCs and lava flows reaching 3.4 km. in Bonga, 2.8 km. in Mi-isi, and 1.1 km. in Basud gullies. “Rockfalls and PDCs g
enerated by collapses of the lava flow margins as well as of the summit dome deposited debris still within four kilometers of the crater,” Phivolcs added. Eighteen volcanic earthquakes and 95 rockfall events were also recorded for the past 24 hours. The Phivolcs chief said volcanic smog (vog) is also unlikely in Mayon because of low volume of sulfur dioxide (S02) emission. Mayon’s S02 emission on Sept. 28 averaged 761 tonnes. “This is not as huge compared to the S02 emission in Taal [in Batangas province]. Mayon’s S02 emission could be dispersed easily,” he said. However, he said continuous rainfall may result in lahar

Source: Philippines News Agency

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources on Friday suspended the protected area management agreement with the Socorro Bayanihan Services Incorporated (SBSI) in Surigao del Norte for gross violation of the pact. In a news release, Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga said the Department will further investigate SBSI’s violation of the terms and conditions of the Protected Area Community-Based Resource Management Agreement (PACBRMA). PACBRMA is a legal instrument between the DENR and tenured migrant groups to develop and conserve a portion of a protected area for a 25-year period. DENR said SBSI was awarded a PACBRMA in 2004, by virtue of the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act of 1992, aimed to protect ecological processes and life support system and to preserve general diversity of an area. The agreement covers 353 hectares of land located in the northeast part of Barangay Sering, overlooking the northeast portion of Bucas Grande Island. Under the provisions of the PACBRMA, SBSI was g
ranted certain rights and privileges over the awarded area within its established Multiple-Use Zone. Together with the DENR, SBSI developed its Community-Based Resources Management Project (CBRMP), which was affirmed in 2013. However, in 2019, DENR began investigating alleged SBSI activities that violated the PACBRMA, including restrictions of entry in the area, the alleged establishment of checkpoints and military-like training, and establishment of structures within the PACBRMA area. DENR said inter-governmental efforts were also made to address the concerns raised against SBSI, and to get them to comply with the terms of the agreement. It said SBSI submitted its updated CBRMP in 2019, which the DENR disapproved due to non-compliance with certain provisions of the agreement. Since then, SBSI has not been able to resubmit the CBRMP, it said. In 2021 and 2022, the DENR called the attention of SBSI on the recurring violations, but did not receive any response. DENR said it is looking at possible resettlement o
f the occupants and will coordinate with the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, provincial government and other authorities to ensure the smooth and peaceful enforcement of the suspension notice. SBSI is being investigated for alleged child abuses, forced marriages involving minors and rape of its members, allegations denied by its officials, led by Jey Rence “Senior Agila” Quilario. Some of the children who escaped from the group served as witnesses against SBSI

Source: Philippines News Agency