More Doctors of Medicine scholars in So. Leyte sign MOA By Bong Pedalino Seven more college students who are taking up Doctor of Medicine courses in three Cebu-based uni- versities affixed their signatures to a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) Wednesday, October 28, inside the conference room of the Governor’s office. Out of the seven, five were phys- ically present accompanied by their parents, while two were represent- ed by their parents for they are still having classes, and with this addition November 16-30, 2015 the number of medical scholars sup- Media Center, 2nd Flr., Capitol Bldg. Vol. III, No. 10 ported by the provincial government increased to nine with the first two signatories last week. Among those who personal- Airline company considers ly signed the MOA were Karell Ann Lamban, 23, from Liloan, first year at the University of Cebu; Rhea Charis- Panan-awan airport route ma Serdan, 21, Maasin City, first year, ByBong Pedalino UC; Lester Clerigo, 21, San Ricardo, first year, UC; Frances Oscar Gavio- A subsidiary of an established air- la, 23, Maasin City first year, UC; and line company has declared its inten- Lanie Mae Goldie, 25, San Ricardo, tion to ply the Maasin- air traffic studying at Cebu Doctors College of as soon as the safety concerns of the Medicine. Panan-awan airport in Maasin City shall Represented by their parents were have been addressed. Dianne Marie Diano, 31, third year, This was learned from a letter dated UV-Gullas College of Medicine, and October 19, 2015 by Michael Ivan Shau, Lesgard John Gonzalez, 24, Cebu President and CEO of Cebu Pacific, ad- Doctors, the two living in this city. dressed to Gov. Roger Mercado and On Tuesday last week, the two pi- marked received by the Governor’s Office oneer signatories, both schooling at October 29. UV-Gullas, were Retchie Jacob Ma- Copies of the letter were distributed drona, 25, from Macrohon, and Paula to members of the local media in a press Elisha Cutamora, 24, from this city. conference with Gov. Mercado at the Kin- Gov. Mercado was unable to come amot sa Abgao restaurant October 30 (left due to some series of engagements photo). earlier in the day, prompting him to “We wish to thank you for the letter rest, but he gave the go-signal to move sent by your office to Mr. Lance Y. Gokon- on with the MOA signing, Provincial gwei requesting Cebu Air, Inc. (‘Cebu Administrator Jesse Quilantang, act- Pacific’) to operate flights from Manila to ing as the presiding officer, said. Maasin using turbo propeller aircraft. The other signatories of the MOA, “Cebgo, Inc. (‘Cebgo’), a wholly-owned (to page 2) (to page 2) DPWH sends notices to DILG Sec. Sarmiento delivers 18 units highway encroachers patrol jeeps for 18 towns (story on p.2) By: Rebecca Cadavos At least 550 notices have been sent to road right of way (RROW) encroachers in Southern Leyte by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), signifying its commitment to clear roadsides from obstructions. In a statement, District Engineer Ma. which is sending notices,” Junia quoted. Margarita C. Junia said that sending notices Of the 550 notices served, 263 are for will continue, prioritizing road sections sched- the first notice, 157 for the second notice, and uled for widening in 2016. 130 for the third notice. Some 54 structures “Removing RROW encroachment has were voluntarily demolished as of end of Sep- been our top priority. We just completed our inventory and we are moving to the next step, (to page 2) Livelihood trainings to distant barangays mulled BLESSING: Asuncion Asst. Parish Priest Rev. Fr. Jerome Dejarme blesses the new jeeps. By: Rebecca Cadavos Encouraged with the testimo- be undertaken, Alfonso Espina III, nies of a better economic condition PSWDO Statistician Aide reported now attained by beneficiaries of during a recent Maasin City Action community-based skills trainings, Center Cable TV program last Tues- the provincial social welfare agen- day. cy wants to line up more livelihood Community-based trainings, trainings in 2016. which are mostly conducted down at The Southern Leyte provincial the barangay halls, were requested government will be pouring more by the barangay folks thru their ba- funds in the livelihood program spe- rangay officials, he added. cifically in capacitating the people,so Sometime in June this year, one that more community-based liveli- of their skills trainings was conducted ARRIVAL: from left, City Mayor Maloney Samaco, Congressman Damian Mercado, DILG Sec. Mel Senen Sarmiento, Gov. Roger Mercado, and ABC President Nikko Mercado hood skills trainings down to the re- walk towards the PNP headquarter where the turn-over program is held. motest barangay in the province will (to page 2) Vol. III, No.10 7 LGUs dared: have lots, DILG will give fire stations

By Bong Pedalino

Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento Train, OIC Police Regional Director and of the Department of Interior and Lo- Deputy Director-General Marcelo Garbo. cal Government (DILG) directly chal- Towards the end of his 30-minute lenged seven (7) local government units speech, Sarmiento said the DILG has in the province who have no space for enough funds for construction of police their own fire department to just find and fire stations once the LGUs can have a suitable area, and his agency will take their lots as counterpart. care of the rest. Checking his list, he said only the “Look for a private landowner who can town of Silago needed a police station, donate land for a fire station, and DILG will while those needing fire stations he men- equip it with a firetruck and correspond- tioned seven: Silago, Hinunangan, Saint ing personnel complete with gadgets and Bernard, Liloan, San Ricardo, Sogod, and fire-fighting apparatus,” Sarmiento said Macrohon. on a rain-soaked Thursday morning No- Mayors of those seven towns, except vember 4 at the Camp Alfredo K. Bantug Nap Cuaton of Saint Bernard, were at- provincial PNP headquarters. tending the turn-over ceremony. GIVE US LOT: DILG Sec. Mel Senen Sarmiento encourages local chief execu- Sarmiento was in the city as guest of The Police and Fire Department are tives to provide lots for fire, police stations. honor and speaker for the turn-over rites under the so-called DILG family. of 18 units Mahindra patrol jeeps to the Sarmiento said the 18 units Mahin- More Doctors of Medicine...(from page 1) police field stations in eighteen (18) mu- dra patrol jeeps he distributed for the nicipalities, the keys accepted by the May- province were part of the 1,490 units all members of the Hospital Enterprise Board that comprised the scholarship ors and the respective chiefs of police, as- provided by DILG to all police field units committee, included Dr. Adelaida Asperin, Dr. Zenaida Abiera, Henry Mad- sisted by P/Sr. Supt. Nicerio Obaob, PNP nationwide to be used as mobility in their ula the Manager of Philhealth provincial office, Sil Toledo, Cecilia Verano of Provincial Director, Gov. Roger Mercado routine task of fighting crime and main- Maasin Maternity and Children Hospital, and Board Member Atty. Abelardo and Cong. Damian Mercado. taining peace and order in their respec- Almario. Also present were Chief Supt. Cedrick tive communities. The scholars and their parents all expressed their deep thanks to the pro- vincial government for coming up with the idea of a scholarship program, for this can definitely help a lot in defraying necessary expenses, and they all shared one thing in common: a desire to serve the people as stated in the MOA Blessing, turn-over of the moment their dreams turn into reality. For his part in a brief talk, Board Member Almario challenged the students not to succumb to problems, or concerns, that may crop up along the way, in 18 patrol jeeps held their lives, studies, and anything in between, telling them to always seek divine guidance. By Rebecca Cadavos “Take this opportunity as an inspiration,” Almario advised. The Philippine National Police-Southern Leyte Police Provincial Office conducted a blessing and turn-over of brand new 18 patrol jeeps to the 18 Airline company...(from page 1) municipalities of the province, Thursday, at Camp Alfredo K. Bantug. subsidiary of Cebu Pacific, would most likely be the operator of flights from Manila to The blessing and turn-over ceremony was graced by Department of Inte- Maasin and Maasin to Manila, with its fleet of ATR 72-500 aircraft,” Shau wrote. rior and Local Government Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento, who was also the In his letter, Shau mentioned the findings of Cebu Pacific’s Safety and Technical guest of honor and speaker during the short program and later led the turn- Team which conducted a survey and inspection in September last year, such as the pro- over of Mahindra Patrol Jeeps to the 18 municipal mayors together with the 18 vision of a Category 5 Rescue and Fire Fighting Service, completion of airport terminal chiefs of police. building, and lengthening of airport runway, among other safety concerns, that should Sec. Sarmiento in his message said that "with these patrol jeeps the po- have been solved once they begin to operate. lice authorities will be better equipped and more responsive in its anti-crime “The bulk of our new aircraft will be arriving in late 2017 in line with our fleet expan- program. These patrol jeeps can help law enforcers to respond immediately to sion plans and we hope that by then, the safety concerns enumerated above would have illegal activities, police visibility in their areas of responsibility and can help been already addressed and certified by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines,” lessen crimes." Shau said. Sarmiento also recalled former DILG Sec. , who started the During the press conference, Gov. Mercado said the concerns were already looked good leadership in the DILG where his strategy approach in community de- into, adding that with a functional airport, coupled with an alternate seaport at nearby velopment was given a big support by the national government towards the Guadalupe area, the tourism and economic potentials of the province will certainly get “Daang Matuwid.” an uplifting boost. Also in attendance during the activity were Police Deputy Director Gen. Marcelo Garbo, Gov. Roger G. Mercado, Cong. Damian G. Mercado, Liga Fed- eration President Nacional Mercado, Maasin City Mayor Maloney Samaco, DPWH sends notices...(from page 1) among other local officials, uniformed and non-uniformed men of the PNP and the media. tember 2015, it was learned. For the entire province, there are 9,224 structures that are up for demolition, based on A total of 1,490 Mahindra patrol jeeps are distributed to the municipal po- records of the DPWH-Southern Leyte District Engineering Office (SLDEO). lice stations throughout the country, it was learned. “We are firm in informing property owners that it is unlawful for anyone to convert any part of the public highway to his or her own private use,” Junia in a press release informed. Meanwhile, Celso R. Mulig, SLDEO right of way agent said that aside from sending no- Livelihood trainings...(from page 1) tices, they have also initiated a lot of negotiations with encroachers and informed them of possible consequences if they will not heed orders. at hinterland Barangay Hilaan, a remote barangay of Bontoc municipality. The SLDEO team checked the sites with encroachment, identified the property owner, According to Espina, skills trainings on accu-pressure and massage the- measured the distance, and marked the structures that need demolition. The encroachment raphy, motorcycle small engine repair, foot spa, manicure, pedicure, hair problem is more serious in Maasin City, Sogod town, Bontoc and some town centers where dressing, make-up, shielded metal arc welding, among others, are up for the some local government-owned structures are within the RROW. people to pick their choices. The source said that the said move is in compliance to Secretary ’s De- partment Order No. 73 in 2014, where he directed the strict enforcement of existing orders on He also shared a positive testimony of one Sogod beneficiary who gen- the removal of obstructions and prohibited uses within the RROW of national highways. erated extra income from the accu-pressure and massage theraphy skills ac- It was learned further that DPWH has listed the following as RROW obstructions: build- quired in the livelihood skills trainings provided by the provincial government ings; houses; shanties; stores; shops; sheds; posts; canopies; billboards; signage; advertise- right at their barangay hall. ments; fences; walls; railings; basketball courts; garbage receptacles; plants and plant boxes. Espina disclosed that an audit system is needed to be put in place in order Also considered as encroachment are driveways and ramps occupying or protruding to to trace the impact on the beneficiaries especially in their employment brought the sidewalk; humps; construction materials (gravel, sand, cement, lumber, steel bars, waste materials), among others; and vehicles and equipment that are junked, parked, and occupying by acquired skills trainings. or protruding to the sidewalk or shoulder. Page 2 November 16-30, 2015 Vol. III, No.10

MEDICINE SCHOLARS: Clockwise from top: The scholars and their parents sign the MOA for their schooling; the scholar in a souvenir pose, from left: Frances Oscar Gaviola, Karell Ann Lamban, Rhea Charisma Serdan, Lanie Mae Goldie, and Lester Clerigo; Provincial Administrator Jesse Quilantang signs the MOA.

ARBOR DAY: Employees from the provincial government and some national line agencies strike for a group picture before heeding to their respective areas for planting on November 8 . At right, Administrator Jesse Quilantang make sure the Batete seedling he planted is in place shortly after planting.

VP VISIT: Vice President is welcomed by DYDM program director Jade Nombrado and Philippine Daily Inquirer correspondent Jani Arnaiz upon arriving at the Radio Station during his visit to the city and province November 5. Inside the Announcer’s booth VP Binay is interview by Nombrado (below photo). At Binay’s right is former ABS-CBN reporter and former Cainta Mayor Mon Ilagan.

HATAW SAYAW: A presentation from the Lady-Senior Citizens in Maasin City during the Filipino Elderly Week celebration in Maasin City, oct302015 @city gym. Earlier at 5:00 am this morning a walk for wellness (Lakaw) around the city proper was conducted participated by the elders. (rgc)

November 16-30 2015 Page 3 Vol. III, No.10 TEXTBLAST NEWS

HIV RISING

Since 2012 until October 23, 2015, the Provincial Health Services Of- fice reported 7 HIV/AIDS cases in Maasin City, of which three had died. Prov- mobalik sa sunod gula. incewide, there WEre 14 cases, in which four died, including those in the city, Dr. Noel Lumen informed. He said these figures are not the real number of cases because of voluntary nature of HIV antibody testing. Suspected HIV/ Maasin City grants social pension AIDS cases may reach six (6) throughout the province. (rgc) to elders at least 90 years old PWDs JOIN FEDERATION By Rebecca Cadavos Some 80 persons with disabilities joined the provincial federation of PWD organization for the first time, PWD Focal Person Velma Kangleon re- At least 87 senior citizens, 90 years old and above received social pension ported. The Provincial Social Welfare Development Office (PSWDO) through funded by the city government of Maasin through the Office of Senior Citizens the initiative of Gov. Roger Mercado wants PWDs in the province to undergo Affairs (OSCA) in a distribution ceremony held Friday at the city gymnasium trainings in order to be economically gainful despite disabilities. (esg) here. The city’s social pension fund is in addition to the social pension funded MODEL OFWs by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for senior Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA)-Region 8 Office citizens, 60 years old and above, it was learned. has recognized the families of Architect Raymond Tobio from Padre Burgos, The 90 years old elders received the cash assistance of P500 per month for Southern Leyte (land based category) and Chief Engr. Rosalino Villardo from the three quarters this year totaling to P4,500 each beneficiary, and the remain- Laong, Northern (sea based category) as its Model OFW Family of the Year awardees, OWWA Regional Director Norma Del Rosario said. They ing last quarter will be received soon, OSCA staff informed. will represent the region for the MOFWYA on December 4. (esg) Among other activities during the day include the “Lakaw, Hataw, Sayaw” performances from the elders. “This is the best exercise that each one of us can ONE TIME HAUL avail of, particularly the elders is through walking and dancing, free for all,” The Philippine National Police in Southern Leyte initiated an anti-ille- Mayor Maloney Samaco said during his message to the seniors. gal drugs operation dubbed “One Time Big Time.” PNP Provincial Director, P/ He said that his administration is promoting healthy and sporty lifestyle, SSupt. Nicerio Obaob, who led the PNP force, conducted search operations not only among the elders but also the teens and middle aged men and women in six municipalities such as Anahawan, Tomas Oppus, Hinundayan, Silago, throughout Maasin City. St. Bernard, and Sogod, in cooperation with the Anti-illegal Drugs special Op- erations Group and nabbed seven (7) drug pushers all in one day. (rgc) The distribution of cash assistance was led by Mayor Samaco, Liga Federa- tion President Nacional Mercado, local social welfare office staff, among other FUNDS FOR PORTS local officials. It was held during the Filipino Elderly Week celebration in Maa- sin City which carries the theme dubbed as , “Igalang and nakakatanda at ang Cong. Damian Mercado reported that project funds for the construc- kanilang karapatan.” tion of Padre Burgos and San Francisco ports in the amount of P 40 Million and P 37 Million, respectively, were appropriated by the DOTC-PPA. In the MOA, the local government units (LGUs) will manage the terminal port with the sharing of 10% for PPA and 90% to LGUs. The Padre Burgos-San Fran- cisco sea lane used to be an old route of transportation, Cong. Mian added. (esg)

RICE STOCK

The National Food Authority (NFA) in the province unloaded 21,000 bags of rice on the second day, NFA Info Officer Eliza Almacen said. This was on top of the rice equivalent of 52,000 rice of bags for its existing buffer stock. Hence a total of 73,000 bags of rice is available at its warehouses in Southern Leyte and Baybay. This rice supply is good until the first quarter of 2016, she added. (esg)

COVER FOR AGRI PRODUCTS

Governor Roger Mercado initiated moves to provide protection to ag- riculture products from the adverse impact of El Nino. The Provincial Agricul- tural Services Office (PAgSO) was tasked to distribute uv polyethelene film to vulnerable vegetable growers in Macrohon, Maasin City, Malitbog, Hinun- dayan, and Silago. The said film will shield the farm products not only from DISTRIBUTION of social pension cash assistance in Maasin City to senior the scorching heat of the sun but from heavy, driving rain as well. (esg) citizens 90 years old & above. Around 87 qualified pensioners in Maasin City received the cash assistance during the Elderly Filipino Week celebration at Maasin City gym, Oct. 30, 2015. The first pensioner who signed was Simeona Basa, a 101 year old from Maasin City. (rgc)

The heights of great men reached and kept Were not obtained by sudden flight. But they, while their companions slept Were toiling upward in the night.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

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