Mrs Juliette Gomez Romualdez (right) is being assisted by soldiers in draping the Philippine Flag on the coffin of her husband, former US Ambassador and Leyte Governor Benjamin "Kokoy" Romualdez after the mass celebration at their residence in Forbes Park, Makati City. Gov. Kokoy Romualdez was 81 years old. ( Ver S. Noveno)

This was revealed by Eastern Samar Representative Ben Evardone who said that the rehabilitation of the said airport would pave the way for the economic development of the province as well as its tourism industry.

Evardone said that the fund to be released by the DOTC would be used to rehabilitate the airport’s facilities which include concreting of its apron at P14.4 million and taxi way; P8 million for the construction of the terminal building;P 5million for the perimeter fence; and P3 million for the concreting of access road.

The bidding for the rehabilitation of the Borongan airport will be held next month, he added.

The Borongan airport, which has a runway of 1.2 kilometers and is located in Barangay Punta Maria, was constructed during the administration of former President Corazon “Cory” Aquino but did not become totally operational. Sometime in 2008, it had a brief operation with the Manila-Borongan route serviced by the South East Asia Star (SEAIR).

However, due to poor number of passengers, the SEAIR stopped its commercial flights.

Evardone said that once the bidding is done, construction of the needed facilities would immediately commence.

“(And) my target for the full operation of the Borongan airport is within this year,” he said.

The solon said that major airline companies have signified their intentions to open a route in Eastern Samar.

At present, passengers from the province use the Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport in Tacloban in going either to Manila or Cebu.

Evardone said that he is optimistic that the operation of the Borongan airport will pave the way for the economic development of Eastern Samar and boost its thriving tourism industry.

“It will definitely help accelerate development of Eastern Samar,” Evardone said.

If the Borongan airport will become operational, it will be the second airport in the entire province to operate.

Earlier, the airport in Guiuan was opened with the opening of the Guiuan-Cebu flight. It is being served by the Cebu-based Mid-Sea Express.

By Joey A. Gabieta
Staff Writer

Romualdez was the younger brother of former first lady Imelda Marcos, who is now a member of the House of Representatives representing the Ilocos province.

Kokoy, as he was fondly called, aside from being the former governor of Leyte was also the country’s ambassador to the Republic of China, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States.

The resolution of condolence was authored by Board Member Roque Tiu.

“It was just proper to extend our condolences and sympathies to the former governor who was an illustrious son of Leyte and had served the province for such a long time,” said Tiu in an interview.

“He was not just a governor of Leyte but he was also an ambassador of the country to the United States,” Tiu added.

“We will send this resolution to his family, and I am sure that the governor ( Jericho Petilla) will offer to lay the body of the former governor at the provincial capitol building to pay respect for him,” he added.

Loreto, meantime, said that provincial administrator Vincent “Vince” Emnas had already issued an order to all offices in the provincial capitol to put the Philippine flag at half-mast as due recognition to a former governor.Loreto added that the provincial government is also ready anytime when the family of the late governor decides to lie his remains at the provincial capitol building.

“We are ready for necrological mass and the province is always open for them,” Loreto stressed.

“The governor I’m sure is very willing to offer and to have the body of the late governor to be brought to the provincial capitol, so that those who are working in the province and our constituents will have the chance to see him for the last time and extend their sentiment to the family of the late governor,” Loreto added.

Both board members added that Romualdez was not just a public servant but had also set as example to others as he was one of those leaders in the province who was well loved and admired by the people. (ROEL AMAZONA)

This was revealed by Labor Regional Director Exequiel Sarcauga during a press briefing.

Director Sarcauga said that the administration of President Benigno Aquino is moving in enhancing the level of competence of Filipinos working abroad.

“Helping our OFWs to be competent enough to work abroad is one of the thrusts of President Aquino,” Sarcauga said.

He added that this specific thrust could be realized in two or three years time from now because it has to go through proper planning, preparation and conceptualization to make OFW’s more competitive.

DOLE, being one of the government agencies assigned to oversee the welfare of the workers, stated that enhancing the competence level of the OFW’s is a way to ask better demand from the employers abroad.

“We are making sure that our OFWs would be called as household skilled workers rather than domestic helpers,” he added.

According to him, to be called as household skilled workers one must possess with several skills that would impress employers.

“The President hopes that by having competent OFWs, his hope to have a basic payment of $40 for OFWs can be attained,” the director said. (REY GERILLA GRADO)

 Earlier, PDIC started mailing the Notice of Payments to depositors with valid accounts with balances of P10,000 and below.  The filing of claims for  accounts with balances of P10,000 and below is waived,  when the depositor  has no outstanding obligation with the bank,  has no other deposits with the bank with balance of above P10,000 and has complete mailing address found in the bank records. Depositors with account balances of P10,000 and below who have not received their Notices of Payment may proceed to RB Calubian during the CSO.

 PDIC advised depositors to bring on their appointment dates their accomplished Claim Form, Claim Status Sheet (CSS), original evidence of deposit, and original and photocopy of two valid IDs bearing the signature of the depositors. Depositors below 18 years old are required to submit a photocopy of their Birth Certificates issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO) or duly certified copies from the Local Civil Registrar. Claim Forms and Claim Status Sheets may also be downloaded from the PDIC website, www.pdic.gov.ph.

  In case the claimant is not the signatory in the bank records, an original copy of a notarized/authenticated Special Power Attorney (SPA) issued by the depositor or parent of minor depositor is required.

 Claims with complete documentation will be processed and paid onsite. Depositors who lack supporting documents will be requested to submit the necessary documents before they are paid.

 Depositors who may be issued Priority Numbers beyond the duration of the CSO may still file their claims with the PDIC representatives during the onsite CSO. However, their claims will be processed at the PDIC-Home Office in Makati City and notices of payment will be sent through mail.

 Depositors who fail to file their claims within the duration of the CSO may submit their claims starting March 9, 2012 either through mail or personally during office hours at the PDIC, 4/F SSS Building., 6782 Ayala Avenue, Makati City.

 Depositors of RB Calubian have until December 16, 2013 to file their claims. Beyond the said deadline, PDIC, as deposit insurer, will no longer accept any claim for insured deposits.

 PDIC assured depositors that it will pay all valid deposit insurance claims as soon as possible.

* * * * *

The Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) was established on June 22, 1963 by Republic Act 3591 to provide depositor protection and help maintain stability in the financial system by providing permanent and continuing deposit insurance. Effective June 1, 2009, the maximum deposit insurance coverage is P500,000 per depositor. All deposit accounts by a depositor in a closed bank maintained in the same right and capacity shall be added together. A joint account shall be insured separately from any individually-owned deposit account. (PR)

Mendador, who chairs the committee on public order and safety and a retired police colonel before he was elected as SP member in the May 2010 elections said, that under P.D. no. 1602-prescribing stiffer penalties on illegal gambling, the inadequacy to discourage would-be offenders a fine that only reaches from P4,000 to P2,000, not  to mention the fact that courts are not given the discretion to impose penalty, both fine and imprisonment, is the reason he said as one of his sacred duty in curbing this social menace turning wastes the resources of his fellow Nortehanons particularly, those belonging to the needy and middle-income earning families.

Citing Sec. 48 of Republic Act 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991, Mendador explained that they (SP members) are empowered at enacting ordinances aimed at preventing, suppressing and as well imposing a fine of up to P5,000 for gambling and other prohibited games of chance.

Apart from the fines stated under Sec. 3 of the said ordinance, under Sec. 2–any person is prohibited to collect bets or any lottery list, paper or that matters containing letters, figures, signs or symbols pertaining to or any manner used in games of jueteng, lottery, jai-alai or horse-racing bookies or similar games of lotteries and numbers which have taken place or about to take place.

For this, Mendador stressed, should there be any confiscation of bets, 50% of the imposed fines will go to the provincial coffer, while the municipality where the apprehension was effected shares 30% and the remaining 20% will go to the apprehending team or individual as their incentive. (PETER PAREDES)

 “We will distribute 60,000 bags of fertilizers this year for application in 14,000 hectares. More farmers are asking for fertilizer since they have realized the advantage of applying it,” Nierva added.

 The PCA expects a 25% increase in yield for every tree applied with fertilizer. Production growth is expected to reach 100% after three years.

 The purpose of distribution, according to the PCA official, is to help farmers appreciate the advantage of salt fertilization and that they will continue to adapt the technology in the future even of the government stops distributing it for free.

Nierva said that the lower yield in inland areas is wrought by deficiency of chlorine in the soil. A PCA survey conducted nationwide showed that coconut palms from at least 40 coconut-producing provinces were severely chlorine-deficient to include Region 8 areas. 

 Study disclosed that coconut fertilization using sodium chloride or salt as chlorine source is a practical means of increasing coconut production in chlorine-deficient areas. Salt is the cheapest and best source of chlorine to increase copra weight per nut and copra yield per tree.

 “We have to invest in programs designed to increase output because demand for coconut products will continue to rise because of increasing population,” he said.

 Since the project launching in 2008, the PCA has already dispersed some 100,000 bags of salt fertilizer in the region with over 10,000 farmer recipients. The region has 649,000 hectares of farms devoted to coconut farming. (Sarwell Q. Meniano)

It is of public knowledge the proliferation of professional squatters and squatting syndicates has been a perennial problem and contiues to besiege the country in nationwide scale not only in the urban areas but in the rural areas as well.

With the establishment of the National Drive Against Professional Squatters and Squatting Syndicates (NDAPSSS) of which the DILG is a member agency, the government is very serious in addressing the problem. However, such would be realized only with the big help of the local government units thru the creation of their local comittees against squatting syndicates and professional squatters which will serve as the operating arm of the NDAPSSS in the local level in combating the squatting problem.

The legal basis for the creation of this local body is Sec. 27 of RA 7279 or the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992 which states that “the local government units, in cooperation with the Philippine National Police, the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP) and the PCUP–accredited urban poor organization in the area, shall adopt measures to identify and effectively curtail the nefarious and illegal activities of professional squatters and squatting syndicates.”

Another legal mandate is Executive Order 129 dated October 15, 1993 establishing an institutional mechanism to curtail the activities of professional squatting syndicates and professional squatters and intensifying the drive against them. Executive Order No. 153 dated December 10, 2002, instituting the national drive to suppress and eradicate professional squatting and squatting syndicates, amending Executive Order No. 178 and 129 and for other purposes, Section 9, Chapter II, implementing guidelines of Executive Order No. 153.

The local CASSPS shall be composed of the mayor as chairman, the chief of police of PNP, the representative of the PCUP, the president of the PCUP –accredited urban poor organization, duly designated representative of HUDCC, the Liga ng mga Barangay president in the Municipality, the representative from the private sector.

The powers and functions of the committee is to adopt the necessary measures to identify and effectively curtail the activities of professional squatters and squatting syndicates, including the names of public officials and private individuals or entities suspected of abetting or tolerating the commission of said acts, provide the HUDCC and HHA copies of the list of identified professional squatters and squatting syndicates in order to safeguard  against their inclusion on future government housing programs/ projects and recommend their disqualification in existing programs, provide legal assistance to victims of professional squatters and squatting syndicates, giving priority to small property owners and make available through the PNP, and DOJ a consolidated list of professional squatters and squatting syndicates, file or assist the complainant in filing charges before the prosecutors office, undertake investigation of cases of violation of laws or rules on eviction and demolition forwarded to it and recommend appropriate actions, monitor eviction and demolition activities, submit report to HUDCC in the implementation of RA 7279.

The responsibility of the regional director is to cause the immediate and widest dissemination of the memorandum circular to all concerned city and municipal governments, submit quarterly reports regarding the LGUs compliance in the creation of LCASSPS, submit demolition and eviction activities by LCASSPS. (Gerardo C. Reyes Jr.)

Those concerned must now act before a calamity occurs. The lesson in Haiti where many buildings collapsed and many lives were lost must not be taken lightly. Earthquakes of greater magnitude are becoming more frequent.

Missing Link

Such notice from the government is rather late. It’s been for years, even decades, that such products have been around. In fact, our people know how inferior these products are. They just frown upon these in terms of quality. They don’t really expect these products to work well based on experience and observation. But most of the time, our people still buy such materials due to their financial handicap to buy the original items that are too costly. They just resort to buying these counterfeit products supplied by Chinese manufacturers.

Indeed, in the absence of an original carpentry tool, for instance, an imitation will do. We just have to use it with extra care, not exhausting its function, or forcing it to work beyond its usage, like using fliers as hammer. It’s better to have a fake tool than to have nothing at all. Just bear with frustrations resulting from the tool’s poor performance. Just don’t expect so much from it.

But this will depend on the item, though. Some of our needs can make do with fake items. But some cannot. We will be putting ourselves at risk if we will insist on still using them. We may clarify this point. For items like bags, shoes, and RTWs, the imitation ones are tolerable in that they do not necessarily threaten our health. But for cosmetics, electrical devices, mechanical and such other tools, imitations should be avoided as they pose sure risks to our safety.

Indeed, many of these cheap products are risky when used. The electrical devices are classic examples. They could spark and cause fire particularly in squatter areas where the houses are made of light materials, standing close to one another, and the passages for fire trucks are absent. Plenty of fire incidents that had occurred in various places have been blamed on said electrical products. In fact, many of these are Christmas lights that plenty of people buy during the Yuletide season. The rest are home and office gadgets that make use of electricity to be functional.

Now if these things will continually be allowed to proliferate, our people buying them in great bulk, then these products will flood our market all the more. The poor segment of our population would be drawn endlessly to these cheap products that do not only function poorly but also threaten their lives in many ways. It’s a good thing the government agencies concerned are starting to intervene to save our poor buyers from various harms. Just because ours is a poor country doesn’t mean that it has become nothing but a dumping cite for garbage products.

Whatever products are they that prove hazardous to our people must be banned. Our people, on the other hand, should stop buying them only for reasons that these items are cheap. They should learn how to save to be able to buy genuine products that last long and serve them the purpose. They are not that cheap to be for life glued to cheap items.

By: Lemuel Pagliawan

Commentary

“Death plucks my ears and says: ‘Live – I am coming”, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote on his 90th birthday.  Death also comes to presidents. 

Assassin bullets cut down Anwar Sadat in a Cairo parade and John F. Kennedy in a Dallas motorcade. In 1957, Ramon  Magsaysay’s plane slammed into Mount  Mannungal and  exploded in a ball of fire.

Cebu PC chief Cornelio  Bonded  and  Lt . Julian Ares and were bumped off that “ Mount Pinatubo “ flight. A  spur-of-the-moment  invitation,  by  Magsaysay, : gave their seats to  Senator Tomas Cabili and  Rep  Pedro  Lopez.     

The first rescue team reached the smouldering wreck and shattered bodies at sunset the next day. It was led by Lt. Ares, now a Chicago retiree. Magsaysay’s remains were identified from his wrist watch.

 All year round, we dodge the reality of mortality.  Quit shilly-shallying and get real, says Ash Wednesday. We’re all flawed and “journeying to the grave.”

“This court resumes tomorrow at two o’clock in the afternoon,” impeachment presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile rasps when he gavels end of the day’s session.

“Presume not to promise yourself the next morning,” 14th century writer Thomas a’ Kempis counsels.   “And in the morning, consider you may not live till nightfall…Many die when they least think of it….A man is here today. And tomorrow, he is gone. And when he is taken out of sight, he is also quickly out of mind.”  

“What if this day were to be my last?”, asks   Agustine “Og” Mandino II,   World War II bombardier turned author. .”This day is all I have. Each hour can not be banked today to be withdrawn on the morrow, for who can trap the wind?

“Today, I shall embrace my children and my woman. Tomorrow, they will be gone. And so will I. Today, I will lift up a friend in need. Tomorrow, he will no longer cry for help. Nor will I hear his cries. Tomorrow, I will have nothing to give. And there will be none to receive.”

“Each minute of today must be more fruitful than hours of yesterday…”I will live today as if it is my last. And if it is not, I shall fall on my knees to give thanks.”

Foreheads smudged with ashes Wednesday starts the 40-day season of Lent.   Dusting with ashes, as a sign of contrition, goes back centuries. “The other eye wandereth of its own accord,” Job admits.  “Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”

 By the 8th century, “Day of Ashes” rites had become common throughout   the church.  Post-Vatican II formulations are drawn from Mark. “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel”, one says.  The other states: “Repent, and hear the good news.”

Wednesday’s ashes come from burnt Palm Sunday 2011 fronds. With oil of the catechumens, ashes are stirred into a paste. Then, a priest or lay minister traces the moist dust, on foreheads of people in queues.

The rite harks back to the shattering sentence handed down in an    Eden marred by disobedience: “By the sweat of your brow you shall get bread to eat, until you return to the dust from where you were taken.”

 ”What is the meaning of our strange behavior?” asks Anglican archbishop of Canterbury in his 2011 book: Writing in the Dust.  “Three things, I believe. With these Lenten ashes, we confess. We promise.  We hope” —— in a journey towards renewal.

The three asetical pillars of Lent — prayer, fasting and sharing with the needy — is common to   major faiths. Muslims observe Ramadan. Jews fast on Yom Kippur. Hindus and Buddhists set aside days for fasting

“We are able to ponder our ashness with / Some confidence, only because our every Wednesday of ashes / Anticipates your Easter victory over that dry, flaky taste of death”, Walter Brueggemann,  notes in his poem:  “Marked by Ashes”. 

Must this rebooting start on Wednsdays?, asks  the Philippine Jesuit  website.  ‘Coming in the middle of things, Lent demands we stop and break mid-stride, mid-sentence, even mid-thought. We must take stock…What is truly important?

 ”We all have our histories and pasts to deal with, writes  Fr  Daniel Huang  SJ .  .  But   coming in the middle of things, Lent   gives hope. “No matter how old we are – 7 or 97 – it is never too late to move ”one small, faltering, but real step at a time”

Those smudged ashes acknowledge that,” in the end, it’s not the fault of MILF, Al Qaeda (or sealed dollar accounts and juggled statements of assets and liabilities?) Ash Wednesday is facing the truth of darkness in our hearts.  

“We refuse to evade responsibility, to point fingers at someone else, to find convenient scapegoats, to practice our Filipino cultural expertise in palusot.   This is not mass masochism, communal guilt tripping, just plain honesty…In the end, it is our fault,” we say.

“We must refuse to remain paralyzed by self-pitying powerlessness that says hindi ko kaya, ganito na talaga ako, di ko na kayang magbago, Huang adds. This is- possible because of ”the utter gratuity of grace.”

Lent‘s ashes make two choices clear. “”This day…I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses,: Moses told his rebellious  people.” Choose life, so that you and your children may live.”

Beyond a handful of ashes is an offer of  “life to the full”. After Ash Wednesday is Easter Sunday. 

By: Juan Mercado