AFP, PNP personnel undergo peace reporting
seminar-workshop
By Venus L. Garcia
BUTUAN CITY, Mar. 4 (PIA) – Eastern Mindanao civil
military officers and Philippine National Police public relations officers have
attended the Peace Reporting Seminar-Workshop held recently in Davao City on
purpose of capacitating them with ample skills in writing news and acquiring
knowledge on several means of information distribution.
During a fellowship night among AFP officials,
together with Philippine Information Agency (PIA) Eastern Mindanao directors,
PIA-11 regional director Efren Elbanbuena bared in his opening remarks that the
conduct of the two-day Peace Reporting Seminar-Workshop is the first of its
kind activity conducted in the country. “See to it that your stories will reach
to our office and we assure you of the timely and proper dissemination of the
articles. More people will become aware of what our uniformed men in service
are doing for the community especially in pursuing peace and security for
sustainable development,” addressed Elbanbuena.
Meanwhile, commander of Eastern Mindanao Command
LtGen Rey Leonardo B Guerrero cited in his message the value of information in
this time of age. “It’s like a currency that drives business and operations.
Information helps people make better decision. It shapes the perception in the
minds of the readers and makes them aware of what is happening around them.
Aside from deployment of troops, it is also important to know on how to
properly utilize information especially with vital concerns on peace and
development,” he underscored.
Guerrero also encouraged the participants to be
adept in the use of information. “As information bearers, you need to know
what, how and when to write so that full media spectrum may be achieved. It is
important that we deliver the facts in order to increase our credibility and
gain community support for our significant undertakings. What is not being
reported would mean that anything does not happen. We should dominate in
letting the public know what the government is doing for them. Do not just be
responsive but make it a practice to be a proactive uniformed personnel as
well,” added Guerrero.
Critiquing of the participants’ outputs was done
for each session to appraise on how far they have learned and enhanced their
competence. (VLG/PIA-Caraga)
NYC set to conduct ‘Youth Advisory Council
National Convention’
By Venus L. Garcia
BUTUAN CITY, Mar. 4 (PIA) – With the goal of
strengthening partnership and convergence among youth serving-agencies and the
localization of policies and programs for the youth, the National Youth
Commission (NYC) will be conducting the Regional Youth Advisory Council (RYAC)
National Convention on March 30 to April 1, 2016 in Boracay, Malay, Aklan.
According to NYC chairperson Gregorio Ramon
Tingson, the convention also aims to synchronize youth programs and come up
with a strategic plan of action for calendar year 2016 which mainly focus in
two areas – Philippine Youth Development Plan and the Sangguniang Kabataan
Reform Implementation.
“NYC instituted the Regional Youth Advisory
Council (RYAC) as a coordinating body to localize policies, and monitor program
implementation at the local level. Therefore, I encourage all member-agencies
nationwide to allow your designated youth focal person to convene with us. It
is our belief that your presence is important in the attainment of our common
objectives intended for the young members of our community,” bared Tingson.
The NYC is the sole policy-making body on youth
affairs and is responsible for coordinating and implementing programs that
would holistically help in the development of the Filipino youth.
Queries and/or confirmation may be sent at email
address nyccdo@nyc.gov.ph. on or before its deadline on March 10, 2016.
(VLG/PIA-Caraga)
RDC-Caraga calls LGUs, RLAs to support
Caraga-Expo, 25th MinBizCon
By Daisy Jane M. Apit
BUTUAN CITY, Mar. 4 (PIA) – The Regional Development Council (RDC) -
Caraga passed on Wednesday an omnibus resolution which urged the local
government units (LGUs) and regional line agenices (RLAs) to support business
activities such as trades, expos and conferences in the region.
In the recently held 86th RDC full council meeting
here, the RDC-Caraga passed an omnibus resolution on the following: Resolution
No. 9-A, Series of 2016 “Enjoining the LGUs and RLAs to support the Caraga
Agri-Trade and Marketing Export or CARAT Expo 2016; Resolution No. 9-B, Series
of 2016 “Enjoining the LGUs and RLAs to support the 25th Mindanao Business
Conference (MinBizCon.” These resolutions aim to carry and achieve the goal of
making Caraga region the Fishery, Agro-Forestry, Mining, and Eco-Tourism (FAME)
center of the country by year 2030 - developing the region’s resources in
fishery, agriculture, forestry and ecotourism.
Meanwhile, the Department of Trade and Industry
(DTI) Caraga regional office revealed that they have recently launched the
Caraga Agri-Trade and Marketing Expo 2016 (CARAT Expo 2016) last January 22
gathering some 5,000 small and big businesses all throughout Mindanao that are
engaged in agriculture and aqua-marine business.
The said multi-stakeholder agricultural event will
last up to Nov. 11, 2016 while the 25th MinBizCon is tentaively scheduled on
August 24-26, 2016 at Philippine Gateway Hotel in Surigao City, it was learned.
(DJMA/PIA-Caraga)
DA Caraga bridges the future for IPs
By Aurelius P. Arais
BUTUAN CITY, Mar. 4 (PIA) - True to its commitment
to help improve the lives of indigenous people (IPs), the Department of
Agriculture (DA) Caraga will provide farm equipment to Manobo community in La
Paz, Agusan del Sur.
A signing of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was
inked between DA Caraga and Manobo Indigenous Cultural Community of Agusan,
Incorporated (MICCA Inc.) based in Brgy. Kasapa II, La Paz, Agusan del Sur held
at DA Regional Office on Thursday, March 3, 2016.
DA Caraga was represented by Regional Director
Edna Mabeza while MICCA Inc. was represented by its president Pedro Francisco
Hernandez known as Datu Bunanat.
The Manobo community is set to receive one unit of
a 4-wheel drive farm tractor, one unit corn mill and one unit corn sheller
worth P2.5M.
Hernandez said that the support of the Department
of Agriculture is the realization of their hopes and aspirations to improve the
IP community.
“This is not only an opportunity for people of La
Paz, it is the future of our town,” Datu Bunanat said.
He said that the provisions from DA will help them
in developing initially the five-hectare land to be planted with corn.
Members of the group envisioned to expand the corn
areas to come up with a plantation type of operation along with other
commodities suitable for their area.
DA’s support to the Manobo community of La Paz
complemented the vision of LGU to increase production efficiency and reduce
production costs by mechanizing critical field operation and contribute to the
food sufficiency program of the government.
DA Caraga is implementing the Corn Program, a
major component of the Medium Term Agriculture Development Plan to ensure
national sufficiency in corn and promote empowerment in the countryside by
enabling farmers to raise their income. (DA-Caraga/PIA-Caraga)
SurSur COMELEC shifts VCM training for BEIs, PPCRV
By Greg Tataro Jr.
TANDAG CITY, Surigao del Sur, Mar. 4 (PIA) – As
the May 9 polls keeps on getting closer, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC)
in Surigao del Sur has now begun to carry out another very important task—the
conduct of vote counting machine (VCM) training for all Board of Election
Inspectors (BEIs), to include representatives from the Parish Pastoral Council
for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), since March 1 that will last until March 15,
except during Saturdays and Sunday.
On February 28-29, all election officers (EOs)
here had been the first to undergo the same.
Atty. Raquel Limbaco, provincial election
supervisor (PES) and concurrent COMELEC Caraga regional attorney, who took over
the post of the poll body in the province on February 16 as a result of the
usual revamp among peers in the said agency, told media that each batch of
teachers/BEIs from a particular city or town were to be trained in two
consecutive days until all of them could be covered.
“So far, it’s going smooth sailing,” she said when
asked for comment.
With the ongoing VCM training here, all function
rooms of one of the biggest hotels in the city had been occupied, it was
learned, Atty. Limbaco citing about 1,272 BEIs province-wide.
As honorarium, each BEI participant will have to
get P2,000 for this occasion alone, according to the provincial poll body
chief, aside from the P4,500 come election time or a total of P6,500.
She likewise added that such undertaking was
exclusive and not open for the public.
Meanwhile, Atty. Limbaco admitted to so many
election-related functions and schedules that had to be tackled ahead of the
May 9 polls.
Among the more urgent ones that she would like to
do first were the usual paying of courtesy calls on high ranking officials of
the province and holding a conference with the members of the Provincial Joint
Security Control Center (PJSCC), she added. (NGBT/Radyo ng
Bayan-Tandag/PIA-Surigao del Sur)
DA Caraga equips LGU agri extension workers
By Aurelius P. Arais
BUTUAN CITY, Mar. 4 (PIA) - To keep abreast on the
latest developments on corn industry and to ensure proper coordination, the
Department of Agriculture (DA) Caraga conducted a retooling for the local
government units (LGU) based agricultural extension workers (AEWs) on February
29 - March 1, here.
The retooling and technical briefing of the AEWs
was spearheaded by the AgriPinoy Corn Program attended by extension workers
designated to corn and cassava projects on their respective local government
units as well as with municipal and provincial corn coordinators.
Considering the number of AEWs in the region, two
batches of training will be conducted wherein the recent batch of participants
were from municipalities in Agusan del Norte including Butuan City, Surigao del
Norte, and the Province of Dinagat Islands while the second batch will be held
in Surigao del Sur on the later part of the first quarter for participants
coming from Surigao del Sur and Agusan del Sur.
Aljurie Galos of Claver, Surigao del Norte, a
first time participant on the said training said that the activity was
knowledge enhancing and very useful for the farmers in their area.
“As a young member of the corn program, I have
learned a lot from this training especially the technical aspects such as the
quality control and environmental management,” he said.
Field Operations division chief Rebecca Atega, who
is also the corn and cassava program coordinator answered queries from the
participants so as to attain common level of understanding among regional and
LGU program implementers.
Proper coordination between DA and LGU are very
crucial link in the delivery of services to the farmers to ensure that the
target set for CY 2016 will be met by the end of the year.
The involvement of the local government units thru
its AEWs plays a big role in the implementation of projects and programs for
agricultural development in the region. (DA Caraga/PIA-Caraga)
AgSur declared ‘conflict-manageable and
development-ready’
PATIN-AY, Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur, Mar. 4
(PIA) – The province of Agusan del Sur was finally declared as
Conflict-Manageable and Ready for Further Development in a ceremony held at the
Session Hall of Democrito O. Plaza Government Center here on March 3, 2016. The
activity was witnessed by key government agencies, Armed Forces of the
Philippines (AFP) and Philippine National Police (PNP) officials.
Agusan del Sur Governor Adolph Edward Plaza said
that the province is very fortunate for achieving this conflict-manageable
state. "The challenge now is to sustain it. We can only do it by
propelling development especially in remote communities. And we can only gain
it, if all of us works together. I would really like to thank the Armed Forces
of the Philippines for helping us to achieve this kind of environment," he
said.
“Ang ating sundalo ngayon ay hindi lang pang
giyera, pang development pa. (Our soldiers are not only for war but they are
also an active partners for development). It is our hope that they continue
their program especially the Bayanihan Team Activity which serves as catalyst
for peace and development in the far communities,” Plaza added.
Meantime, Lt. Gen. Leonardo Rey Guererro,
commander, Eastern Mindanao Command emphasized that “on reaching this stage of normalcy, the
positive outcomes are: first, economic growth where investments can pour in to
enable the people to actively participate in economic activity, second,
political stability where we exercise are legitimacy and third, social harmony,
where people live and interact freely without fear from violence and
intimidation.”
Also, Maj.
General Oscar Lactao, commander, 4th Infantry Division, Phil. Army
shared that the New People's Army (NPA) has always been called and invited to
join the government in this peaceful endeavor.
“With this declaration of a Conflict Manageable
Agusan del Sur, the people of the province have spoken that they do not want
violence and disorder. The NPA should heed to this call,” remarked Lactao.
(JPG/4ID, PA/PIA-Agusan del Sur)
SurSur DOLE bares 2,163 SPES slots
By Greg Tataro Jr.
TANDAG CITY, Surigao del Sur, Mar. 4 (PIA) – The
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) here, headed by Raymond Fel Sajor,
bared a total of 2,163 slots for the implementation of the Special Program for
the Employment of Students (SPES) “this summer of 2016.”
In a press statement, Romelyn Bactol, labor
employment officer III (LEO III) and concurrent SPES focal person, said that
the number of slots is based on the “Pledges of Commitment” made by 12 local
government units (LGUs), six private institutions, including Surigao del Sur
State University (SDSSU).
Both the component cities of Bislig and Tandag had
offered the most number of beneficiaries to be employed with 688 and 530,
respectively, according to the labor officer.
The rest of the LGUs that also made a “pledge of
commitment” included Cagwait, Madrid, Tago, Bayabas, Barobo, San Miguel,
Tagbina, Hinatuan, Marihatag, and Carrascal, according to the DOLE here.
Besides, among the private institutions named were
Andres Soriano College, De La Salle John Bosco College, and SURSECO I, all in
Bislig City plus St. Theresa College of Tandag, Inc., and Hinatuan Southern
College.
To qualify under the SPES Act, a set of criteria
had to be followed, Bactol said, citing the age requirement of at least 15 to
25 years old for the applicant whether student or out-of-school youth (OSY);
the combined net income which should “not exceed the latest annual regional
poverty threshold level for a family of six as determined by the National Economic
and Development Authority (NEDA); and the “average passing grade last school
year/term attended” of the applicant.
Interested applicants were advised to visit the
respective Public Employment Service Office (PESO) of the LGUs as well as the
offices of the institutions above mentioned.
If hired, SPES grantees “will be working as
profilers, office clerks, laborers, landscapers,” and the like, it was learned.
Bactol clarified that SPES grantees would receive
the “minimum wage if they are under the private establishments/institutions.”
On the other hand, “the existing hiring rate” would be the basis for the wages
of those hired by LGUs.
As in the past, the payment of salaries/wages
would be based on a “60/40” ratio between the employer and the DOLE—the 60
percent of which would be paid in cash by the former and the balance by the
latter “in the form of voucher applicable for the payment of tuition fees in
any secondary, tertiary, vocational or technical educational institution,” she
said.
Apart from salaries/wages, SPES grantees would
also be “covered with GSIS Insurance prior to their employment period,” she
added. (NGBT/Radyo ng Bayan-Tandag/PIA-Surigao del Sur)
2016 CMCI roadshow set in Surigao City
SURIGAO CITY, Surigao del Norte, Mar. 4 (PIA) –
The Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI) which is now in its
4th edition this year will conduct a Provincial Roadshow on March 8, 2016, at
Parkway Hotel, this city.
The roadshow which is spearheaded nationwide by
the National Competitiveness Council is an annual activity conducted prior to the
data gathering for the Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index (CMCI)
ranking.
The Regional Competitiveness Committee headed by
the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will conduct the roadshow in
coordination with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
CMCI is a ranking that determines the degree of
competitiveness of local government units (LGUs) looking into the overall
economic dynamism, government efficiency and vital infrastructures.
The goal is to drum up awareness of the LGUs to
improve their level of territorial competitiveness that can hopefully attract
investments and businesses that will help hasten and catalyze economic
development in their respective localities.
The roadshow will be attended by the local chief
executives (LCEs), planning and development officers, business permit licensing
officers (BPLOs), local economic and investment promotion officers (LEIPOs)and
other local officials.
DTI provincial director Celestino L. Negapatan
said that various policy measures, approaches and mechanism to improve
competitiveness of their respective LGUs will be discussed along with the
relevant parameters used in the Index that are valuable insights in local
governance will be tackled in the roadshow. (DTI-SDN/PIA-Surigao del Norte)
DPWH 13 joins Women’s Month kick-off celeb
BUTUAN CITY, Mar. 4 (PIA) - Not minding the still
torturing heat of the sun, the men and women of the Department of Public Works
and Highways Regional Office (DPWH) XIII, Butuan City District Engineering and
Agusan del Norte District Engineering Office join the colorful parade as
kick-off to the month-long celebration of the annual Women’s Month on March 1,
2016.
The month of March is dedicated to women in
recognition to their rights, vital contribution tothe society and in nation
building.
Organized by the Regional Development
Council-Gender and Development Coordinating Committee (RDC-GADCC), this year’s
celebration is anchored on the theme, “Kaayuhan ni Juana, Iapil sa
Adyenda" (Women's Welfare, to include in the Agenda).
Member-agencies including the local government
units consist the throng of gender conscious employees in the fun-filled
activity that culminates with a short program honoring women through a serenade
and giving of roses by the male employees at the Capitol Covered Court.
Said parade starts from Guingona Park and ends at
the Capitol Covered Court here.
Meanwhile, RDC-GADCC also lined up the activities
for the whole month which includes the following: March 8 - Kalandrakas sa mga
Kababaihan – a whole day affair that showcases trade fair, flea market
featuring products made by our women, food cooking demonstration, videoke
challenge and an award program for the Outstanding Women/Recognition of Women
leaders in various endeavors; March 29 - Candidates’ Forum; March 31 -
Culmination Program – which includes sports competition dubbed as 'Laro ng
Lahi.' (DPWH-13/PIA-Caraga)
