one mindanao - january 16, 2012

PIA REGIONAL OFFICESWestern Mindanao (Zamboanga Peninsula))

P. Urro Street, San Francisco DistrictPagadian City, Zamboanga del Sur 7016Telephone no. (062) 215-1480 / 925-0038Cellphone no. 0908-8843404E-mail: [email protected] [email protected]: www.piazampen.blogspot.comFacebook: PIA WesMin Info Bliz

Northern Mindanao

Graces’ Building, Antonio Luna StreetCagayan de Oro City 9000Telefax No. (08822) 72-66-83Telephone no. (088) 856-8178 / 729-594Cellphone no. 0928-5204305 0917-3084969E-mail: [email protected] [email protected]: www.pia-10.blogspot.com

Southern Mindanao (Davao Region)

2/F Kanto Motors Bldg.,Quimpo Blvd., New MatinaDavao City 8000Telephone no. (082) 297-0991 / 301-8580Telefax no. (082) 297-0992 / 304-2044Cellphone no. 0917-7053606 / 0918-9202950E-mail: [email protected]

Central Mindanao (SOCCSKSARGEN)

Provincial Capitol Compound Bautista Bldg., Zulueta St.Koronadal City, South Cotabato 9506Telephone no. (083) 520-0249Telefax no. (083) 228-9736 / 228-9739 / 520-0100Cellphone no. 0921-6873373 / 0928-5204307E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]

Northeastern Mindanao (Caraga)

Vice Mayors’ League of the Philippines Bldg.,J. Rosales Avenue, Butuan CityTelephone no. (085) 341-5285 / 360-1239Telefax no. (085) 341-2370Cellphone no. 0917-7188834Email: [email protected] , [email protected],phBlogspot: www.piacaraga.blogspot.comFacebook: PIA Caraga Updates, PIA Agusan del Norte, Pia Agusan del Sur, Pia Surigao del Norte, Pia Surigao del Sur

Today’s issue... Monday, Jan. 16, 2012 Vol. 1 No. 155

Aquino vows to get the bottom of alleged land grabbing incidents in Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway project

2 Davao Start-ups goes to Silicon Valley

CBMEG helps ensure DA-MRDP Projects sustainable

Bayog peace and order council convenes, tackles IPSP

Muslim village receives P5-M projects

Lanao del Norte lass bags Sinulog Queen 4th Runner-up crown

NPA leader, two other rebels surrender

12Aquino deputizes law enforcement agencies to assist COMELEC in 2nd District of Zambales special elections

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Anti Trafficking Task Force extends help for reintegration of trafficked persons

Mai Gevera Macapagat, Southern Mindanao

Thousands of Cotabato children benefit from “Handog Tsinelas”

PNP entrance, promotional exams go online

Aurell P. Arais, Caraga Region

Bernadine A. Gabawan, Western Mindanao

Jocelyn P. Alvarez, Western Mindanao

Vincent N. Labial, Northern Mindanao

Ruby Leonora R. Balistoy, Northern Mindanao

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Executive Editor ……......... EFREN F. ELBANBUENA Cluster Head, Southern, Western and Central Mindanao Regional Director, PIA Region XI

Managing Editor ……......... ABNER M. CAGA Cluster Head, Northern and Northeastern Mindanao Regional Director, PIA Caraga Region Officer-in-charge,PIARegionX

Associate Editors ……....... NOEMI B. EDAGA Regional Director, PIA Region IX

OLIVIA T. SUDARIA Regional Director, PIA Region XII

Regional Desk Editors …... Jocelyn P. Alvarez, PIA Region IX Elaine O. Ratunil, PIA Region X Rudolph Ian G. Alama, PIA Region XI Danny E. Doguiles, PIA Region XII Robert E. Roperos, PIA Caraga Region

Copy Editors ……………….. Robert E. Roperos, PIA Caraga Region Nora C. Lanuza Molde, PIA Caraga Region

Layout Artists ……………... Gerie Mae G. Coco, PIA Caraga Region Richard D. Atillo, PIA Caraga Region Editorial Advisers :

ATTY. JOSE A. FABIADirector-General

Philippine Information Agency

SEC. HERMINIO “Sonny” B. COLOMAPresidentialCommunicationsOperationsOffice

EDITORIAL BOARD

Cover Story

Diversified banana farm

rakes in millions for

Kapalong farmers’ coop

Carina L. CayonSouthern Mindanao

Monday, Jan. 16, 2012 Vol. 1 No. 155


2 Davao Start-ups goes to Silicon Valley


Bayog peace and order council convenes, tackles IPSP

Muslim village receives P5-M projects

Lanao del Norte lass bags Sinulog Queen 4th Runner-up crown

NPA leader, two other rebels surrender

Aquino deputizes law enforcement agencies to assist COMELEC in 2nd District of Zambales special elections

Anti Trafficking Task Force extends help for reintegration of trafficked persons

Mai Gevera Macapagat, Southern Mindanao

Olive Sudaria, Central Mindanao

Thousands of Cotabato children benefit from “Handog Tsinelas”

Pops Gumana-Fruylan, Central Mindanao


Bernadine A. Gabawan, Western Mindanao

Vincent N. Labial, Northern Mindanao

Ruby Leonora R. Balistoy, Northern Mindanao

Nora CL Molde, Caraga Region

27

31

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35 page 4

Photo CreditsDolly Amaut/DAR-11

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4 Monday, January 16, 2012ONE MINDANAO

Cover StoryDiversified banana farm rakes in millions for Kapalong farmers’ coop

E XPORTING bananas is a lucrative

business by itself. Yet, the AMS Employees Fresh Fruits

Producers Cooperative or AMSEFFPCO does not just

settle for this one venture.

by Carina L. Cayon

5 Monday, January 16, 2012 ONE MINDANAO

AMSEFFPCO has found ways at diversifying benefits from its banana plantation other than exporting, mak-ing it at present one of the biggest farmer cooperatives in Davao Region with over P25 million worth of current assets as reported in the coop’s finan-cial statement for 2010. Located in Barangay Sampao, Kapalong town, the cooperative took off from its members who were once plantation workers, to the current sta-tus as members of the cooperatives and co-owners of the land they are till-ing, awarded to them under the Com-prehensive Agrarian Reform Program. From getting its main income from export receipts, the cooperative ventured into the production of flour from banana, and the use of their manufactured organic fertilizers. Four years ago, the coop has put up its own Banana Flour Livelihood Center where its food grade banana

flour is being processed and packed with high quality and safety, best for cakes and pastries. AMSEFFPCO has also developed the bio-organic fertilizer from the wastes of the banana flour produc-tion that collects an average volume of three tons of banana peelings and stalks per day.

Banana production Since the Department of Agrar-ian Reform in the region awarded the plantation to the Agrarian Reform Ben-eficiaries (ARBs) in 2002, AMSEFFPCO has been growing exportable bananas as its main business, continuing their work when they were then workers for the corporate farm owner. Its first production reached 1,416 boxes and sold to AMS Farming Cor-poration at $2.15 per box. It earned them a gross income of P136,118.24.


For the first three years, the coop collectively managed the operations of the banana plantation with the coop members as workers who were each paid a minimum daily wage. The banana production for this period was said to be sufficient, but the high cost of farm inputs and labor have brought low income for the coop. Noting the slow returns of invest-ments, the coop adopted in 2005 the individual farming system wherein ARBs are provided an equal share of 0.73-hectare farm for them to work on. The ARBs grow and tend their own bananas in their respective farm and sell their products to the coop. The coop expanded its coverage by developing nearby farms with

an aggregate area of 50 hectares in Ba-rangay Sampao. The new area involves 25 farmer growers who are now registered as associate members of the coop. At present, AM-SEFFPCO supplies for Dole Philippines at $2.94 per box, by which $0.15 share per box goes to the coop.


Banana flour production

Instead of throwing away Class “C” fresh bananas, considered reject and unqualified for export due to fail-ure to meet standard calibration, AM-SEFFPCO turned it into valuable and money-spinning enterprise, making flour out of it. The Department of Trade and In-dustry helped the coop test the prod-uct suitability for a baking ingredient. The flour has been tested in bakeries, and is confirmed to be 100 per cent flour, a good substitute for rice flour.AMSEFFPCO’s Musa Banana Flour has penetrated the local market, and has been adapted as Kapalong’s One Town One Product (OTOP). Presently, the coop produces five tons of the food grade banana flour and 15 tons of feed grade per month, and supplies Butuan and Manila cat-sup processing corporations. At a plant gate price of P15 per kilo, the food grade flour generated more than P1.5 million gross income for the coop last year. The amount also covered the income from the feed/in-dustrial grade flour at P8 per kilo. AMSEFFPCO has put up the busi-ness through the P1 million funding under the Poverty Zone Program the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE-11). The money was used to acquire its processing equipment in

2007 for feed mill. The Department of Science and Technology (DOST-11) also extended technical support for the analysis and upgrading of the quality of the prod-uct. The Department of Agriculture provided funding of P1 million for up-grading technology on Banana Flour production. Barangay and municipal local governments, private firms and non-government organizations have also reached out to help the coop manage and operate the flour enterprise. The banana flour production live-lihood has provided employment to 38 men and women including indigenous peoples’ families in the community. The workers are called peelers who remove banana peelings.

Bio-organic fertilizer The usefulness of the banana re-jects does not end from the meat be-ing dried and powderized into banana flour. AMSEFFPCO also developed the bio-organic fertilizer from the wastes of the banana flour. According to the coop, the pro-cessing of bio-organic fertilizer and vermi composting is made up of 50% banana stalks and peels, 40% hog manure, 10% carbonized rice hulls, organic composter and enzymes as enhancer for early decomposting.


The coop produces 175 bags per heap bio-organic fertilizer at 50 kilos per bag, with three heaping per week. The bio-organic fertilizer address-es the pressing needs of the coopera-tive members for farm inputs in their banana plantation that requires 40 bags of fertilizer per hectare at two applica-tions per year. The total organic fertilizer require-ment per quarter reaches to 7,480 bags, and a total of almost 30,000 bags per year. AMSEFFPCO has also come up with the development of the bio-organic fertilizer in support to the government’s advocacy on wastes recycling and utili-zation.

Other livelihood projects

The varied enterprises of the coop are not only based on its banana prod-ucts, but also in consumer, oil palm trees and cassava productions, pharmacy and shop business, and a bio-organic

vegetable production. In its oil palm production, the coop provides financial assistance to farmers with lands not suitable for banana, but viable for oil palm trees. The coop has forged a marketing tie-up with the Agusan Mill of Agusan del Sur and Kapalong Cooperative for financial assistance for this project that will involve a 50-hectare area. As of now, about 50 hectares have been de-veloped and planted to oil palm in Sitio Marquez, Barangay Sampao and Sitio Mahayahay, Barangay Mamacao. AMSEFFPCO’s bio-organic veg-etable production is located at a 3,000-square meter area where flow-ers and vegetables grow. According to the coop’s financial statement in 2010, over P 4.4 million earning was obtained from the rice pro-duction, while about P5.6 million was gained from the agriculture supplies and materials. The cassava production earnings reached to P204,271 last year.


With its best practices and in-novations the coop has become one of the agri-industrial tourism destinations in Kapalong, where visitors and busi-ness groups drop by to get a brief lec-ture on its business and achievement.

Effective management

The coop was first managed by Rizalie Calma who is now a barangay ka-gawad in Barangay Sampao. At present, AMSEFFPCO is operating under manager. Sincere Casimina and chair Ansel-ma Ronquillo with seven female and six male office staff who are all members of the cooperative. Calma has once raised the impor-tance of consulting with the proper agen-cies that are knowledgeable in the agri-culture and business aspects. She said that “hard-work and pa-tience are also keys to success in every endeavor we will take.” This millionaire coop comprises of

97 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) collectively awarded with 72 hectares of agricultural land fully planted with export-able Cavendish bananas in the municipal-ity of Kapalong, Davao del Norte. The land was formerly owned by the AMS Farming Corporation. The diversified business undertak-ings of AMSEFFPCO are a unique prac-tice that brings in constant progress and prosperity for a farmers’ cooperative in Davao Region. The coop’s exemplary and laudable achievements in farming, entrepreneur-ship and ecological contributions have earned it several recognitions and awards from government agencies and private sectors. The citations include Most Outstand-ing Small Farmers Organization in Kapa-long; Gawad Saka Award as Outstanding Small Farmers Organization of Davao del Norte; and Most Outstanding One Town One Product (OTOP), among many others.


P resident Benigno S. Aquino III expressed his heartfelt gratitude to Willie Tan for his “commitment” to the Filipino people through the investments put up by his company, Luen Thai Enterprises (LTE) and Tan Holdings Corporation, in the

Philippines.

ACROSS THE NATIONAquino thanks Luen Thai CEO for ‘commitment’ to the Filipino people


In his speech keynot-ing the formal inaugura-tion of D’Luxe Bags Phil-ippines on Monday here, the President said he was “pleased” whenever discussion turned to LTE and Tan because “it was always good news.”

D’Luxe Bags Philip-pines is part of the Luen Thai Group, one of the world’s premier apparel manufacturing compa-nies, and manufactures and exports leather goods under the brand “Coach.”

As of December 2011, D’Luxe employs 1,200 employees capable of

producing 90,000 to 100,000

pieces of Coach bags a month. LTE hopes to in-crease production ex-ports to US$130-million by increasing its produc-tion to five million pieces of bags a year by 2014.

“Obviously before we spend some money we have to earn the money, and it is through efforts of people like Mr. Wil-lie Tan who, I really am very glad that I met just barely two years ago, has already contributed so much to our country. He has so much commit-ment to the Filipino peo-ple,” the President said.

He further thanked Tan for planning to ex-pand his company’s businesses in the

Philippines in the fol-lowing years such as employing “something like eventually 35,000 workers in the coun-try” and by “expand-ing so much besides garments and bags…specifically in the tour-ism sector. As, I un-derstand their compa-nies are also engaged in the tourism sector. And we need all of the help that we can get,” the President contin-ued.“There are people who

are helping us achieve the production of more and more opportunities for our people. It really is imperative on us to ensure that when they leave at the end of the day, or before they sleep, that they really made the right decision in pro-viding us these opportu-nities. And with that, we will proceed from suc-cess to success. We will have inclusive growth and we will be able to achieve the dreams that we all aspire to,” he add-ed. (RCK)



President Benigno S. Aquino III vowed on Monday to get to the bottom of the alleged land grabbing incidents concerning farmers and land owners affected by the construction of the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway project.


In an interview after inaugurating the D’Luxe Bags Philippines manu-facturing plant here, the President said he would soon be meeting with the Departments of Agrarian Reform, Pub-lic Works and Highways as well as Justice to tell them to immediately conduct investigations on the matter.

“…may meeting ako sa DAR at nakausap ko na rin ang DPWH at iba pang mga sangay ng

pamahalaan para big-yan ako ng report at nang mapa-imbestigah-an natin ang alegasyon na ‘yan,” the President said.

“Ang dulo po nito sig-uro, ang maipapangako ko, na may conclusion ‘yung imbestigasyon; may sasabihing: may-roon bang nagkamali rito? Sino ang nagka-mali? Sino ba ang may ginawang mali? Kailan-gan mabigyan natin sig-uro ng kaukulang dead-

line,” he added.“So after ‘nung

pagpulong ko sa DAR at DPWH, baka DOJ rin, ay mabibig-yan nila ako ng idea kung kailan natin mako-conclude ang imbestigasyon na ‘yan,” the President said.

TPLEX, an 88.15 kilometer, four-lane travel way, is a build-operate-transfer (BOT) proj-ect awarded thru bidding to the Pri-

vate Infrastructure De-velopment Corporation (PIDC), a consortium led by San Miguel Corp. and DMCI Holdings, Construction.

When complete, it will pass through the munic-ipalities of Victoria, Ge-rona, Paniqui, Moncada and San Manuel in Tar-lac; Carmen, Urdaneta, Binalonan, Pozzorubio and Sison in Pangasi-nan; and Rosario in La Union. (RCK)


Aquino deputizes law enforcement agencies to assist COMELEC in 2nd District of Zambales special elections

President Benigno S. Aquino III has deputized the law enforcement agencies and instrumentalities of the government, including the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP), to assist the

Commission on Elections (COMELEC) in ensuring the free, orderly, honest, peaceful, and credible conduct of February 4, 2012 special elections for

the 2nd District of Zambales following the death of 2nd District Representative Antonio Magsaysay Diaz last year.


By virtue of Memoran-dum Order No. 29 signed by Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. on January 9, 2012, Presi-dent Aquino concurred with COMELEC Resolu-tion No. 9312.

The election body, through its Resolu-

tion No. 9312 (s. 2011), resolved to request the concurrence of the President in the deputa-tion of law enforcement agencies and other in-strumentalities of the government in connec-tion with the February 4, 2012 special elections in Zambales.

The Chief Executive, likewise, directed the law enforcement agen-cies and other concerned agencies to coordinate and cooperate with the COMELEC in the perfor-mance of their duties and functions. The MO

shall take effect imme-diately.

The Comelec has set the second district con-gressional special elec-tions on February 4, 2012 to fill up the va-cant position left by 2nd District Rep. Diaz who died on August 3, 2011. The late congressman was a nephew of former President Ramon Mag-saysay.

The election body an-nounced the enforce-ment of gun ban in Olon-gapo City and 13 other towns in Zambales for the start of the special elections in the second district of the province.

The COMELEC guide-lines said any private individual, incumbent officials or political can-didates are prohibited to carry firearms or hire armed personnel during the congressional elec-tion.

Campaign period is set on January 19 to February 2 of this year. (JS)


Gov RDR sees need of risk awareness in communities by Jeanevive Abangan

Provincial Gov. Rodolfo P. del Rosario sees the need for

more training and dialogue with people in communities to prevent “unnecessary incident” from hap-pening. Speaking in this morning’s Mon-day Convocation, Del Rosario was re-ferring to the circumstances leading to the death of one Bernardino Elle, 17 years old of Purok 7, San Miguel, Tagum City during the flashflood which occured last Sunday (Jan. 15). Reading the report of the Provin-cial Disaster Risk Reduction Manage-ment Division (PDRMMD), del Rosario

said Elle got drowned while trying to get some floating coconuts that went with the current of floodwaters. In a separate interview, Tagum City DRRMC action officer Albert Angco explained that Elle intentionally went to the river dike in Purok 8 (Brgy. San Miguel) identified as a flood-prone area to gather floating coconuts along with two other friends. Through the barangay captain of San Miguel, Angco had already en-forced pre-emptive evacuation, on Saturday morning, asking all residents of puroks 8, 9, 10 to move out because huge volume of floodwaters coming from upstream Saug and Libogonan rivers was expected to flow down. Angco said residents were al-ready evacuated to from Purok when Elle along with his friends ventured along the river dike in the area while floodwaters were rampaging through. Citing that incident, Angco is ask-ing residents especially in identified hazard-prone areas to seriously take heed of calls of barangays captains


with home local disaster risk reduc-tion management offices are coordi-nating with. “Kung unsa unta ang advisory, maoy sundon. Para man na sa ka-ayuhan nato.” (We should follow ad-visory because that is for our own good.) he said in a phone interview. Despite the incident Angco said DRMMC of Tagum City made suc-cesses in its disaster preparation saying his team rescued only 17 in-dividuals in the recent flood incident compared with 168 in late December last year. He said the pre-emptive evacu-ation orders imposed down to the barangay levels made a difference. Davao del Norte PDRRMC ac-tion officer Sonio Sanchez looked at the incident as isolated saying action officers did pre-emptive evacuation. Citing the incident, Sonio was looking at the possibility of taking on a policy of condoning off evacuated hazard-prone areas to prevent any-one from entering such place and risk their lives. Sonio also consider the need for communities to fully understand global warming and climate change and how these weather conditions are bringing hazards to their lives they’ve not expected to come be-fore. “Tudluan nato sila nga kung may simptoma na sa baha, dapat pre-emptive evacuation na.” (Let’s teach them whenever they notice symptoms of flood, they should do

pre-emptive evacuation.) he said.

Sonio is also thinking of in-tegrating disaster consciousness among families in training barangay to handle incident command sys-tem. He deems it important for fam-ilies to have a grab kit, containing essential needs, that they can grab immediately when disaster strikes. Meanwhile, PDRRMC advises motorists to Davao City to take the Maharlika Bridge because the Miran-da Bridge in Brgy. Bincungan, Tagum City has been closed. As of 1:20 p.m. report of PDRRMC said that roads going to Busaon and Libuganon areas in Tagum City “are no longer passable to vehicles as floodwaters rise up to eight feet,” but the situation is being closely monitored by rescue teams of Tagum City. Other flooded bridges were Pagsabangan and San Miguel, pre-venting light vehicles going to Asun-cion town from passing through, while roads going to B.E. Dujali and Sto. Toma via San Miguel Bridge in Tagum City currently get submerged in floodwater. Davao del Norte PDRRMC re-ported 5,731 families are being af-fected in the recent rush of floodwa-ters in the 29 barangays of Kapalong, Asuncion, Carmen, New Corella, and Sto. Tomas towns and in the city Tagum.


2 Davao Start-ups goes to Silicon Valleyby Mai Gevera Macapagat

DAVAO CITY – Davao City ’s en-tries for the ON3 Pitching Compe-tition, Piclyf and Radgreen Solu-tions won as the two of the three Grand Prize winners who will be brought to Silicon Valley for a three-month exposure, immersion, and funding mission. ICT Davao President Bert Barriga an-nounced this earlier today as both entries landed at the top spot and bested all the other startup companies from other parts of the country. The competition was aimed to look for potential ideas generated from the in-

novative minds of Filipinos that can be developed for introduc-tion to the global markets. The ON3 Pitching is or-ganized by the Science and Technology Advisory Council of Silicon Valley (STAC-SV). Piclyf, created by Eric Su, is a new social network site wherein you use pictures to chronicle your life, or in short, a picture diary. It is fully loaded with the features such as earning badges, following your friends, tagging, and a whole lot more.

Radgreen Solutions, represented by Ricky Dayot, introduces a new technology to help alleviate climate change: The Py-roclave. It is a no-burn waste processor for infectious and hazardous wastes. The Pyroclave technology utilizes the “Hydro-burn” procedure, which enables produc-tion of intense amounts of heat at a lower cost, thus making it economical and envi-ronment-friendly. Both Piclyf and Radgreen Solutions were the semi-finalists in the Mindanao Leg and were subsidized by the DOST XI to the ON3 Pitching Competition Finals at the SMX Convention Center in Manila last July 30, 2011.

A job-seeker is all smiles during the interview done during the Job Fair, one of the compo-nents of the 3-in-1 Public Ser-vice Year 4 in time of the 27th birthday of Tagum City Councilor De Carlo “Oyo” L. Uy last Janu-ary 12, 2012 held at Tagum Cul-tural and Trade Center Pavilion.

regional gallery


MAASIM, Sarangani - Former Board Member Art Lawa (center) and Mayor Jose Zamorro (in blue shirt) appear before the public after a meeting Wednesday, January 11. A day earlier, Lawa, who is contesting the post of Zamorro, arrived in Maasim to follow up his several mo-tions for execution at the local Commission on Elections (Comelec) office. Lawa and Zamorro vowed to maintain the peace and order as they agreed to wait for the Comelec’s official written order. (/Abner Arzaga)

Sarangani town’s leaders vow to maintain peace and order

Photo Release


MinDA calls to strengthen Mindanao LGU’s risk management capacitiesGENERAL SANTOS CITY -- Local Government Units (LGUs) in Mindanao need to scale up its disaster risk management capacities in light of occurrence of series of natural calamities that struck the island’s danger prone areas.

The Mindanao Devel-opment Authority (Min-DA) recently convened recently concerned agencies to come up with programs to strengthen the capacities of Mind-anao LGUs in disaster

preparedness and re-sponse to avoid a repeat of loss of lives resulting from the recent spate of natural disasters that hit Mindanao.

MinDA chair Luwalhati R. Antonino initiated dis-

cussions on the current capability of Mindanao’s local government units to interpret information, anticipate needs, and prepare against natural disasters and manage risks.


“What I’d like to see is for us to map out a pro-gram of what needs t be done and coordinate to help the LGU’s in their efforts of prevention, mitigation, and adapta-tion,” Antonino said.

She stressed that some local officials may lack technical ex-pertise in interpreting weather data and warn-ings. “There is a need to ‘wake up’ local chief ex-ecutives, but we have to assist them. It’s not just preparedness, but also looking into the causes and what we can do now.”

Director Ronald Flores, executive offi-cer of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) pointed out that more than re-sponse, rehabilitation, and recovery, the LGU risk management fo-cus must now be more inclined to prevention, preparedness, and miti-gation, such as in foreign countries like Japan.

Flores said that while LGU’s have their con-tingency plan, some of them are wanting in the aspect of implementa-tion. Thus, there is a

need to take stock of the level of preparedness of the LGU’s being the pri-mary disaster manag-ers.

Dr. Marquiesa Reyes, also of OCD central of-fice, noted that geo-hazard mapping is just the first step, stressing the importance of iden-tifying current areas of vulnerability and the ad-verse effects of tropical storms.

She further noted that more important in the planning is to focus on increasing resilience of settlements and the people against effects of natural calamities.

The inter-agency body agreed on building and sharing accurate and updated data, par-ticularly 3-D maps us-ing LIDAR technology, including a protocol of analysis of data, for cir-culation to all local gov-ernment units.

Antonino emphasized the need for a more in-tensive information and education campaign among the LGU’s on in-terpretation of storm signals and information on what authorities need

to do to prepare against such calamities.

She cited the existing program of the Nation-al Disaster Risk Reduc-tion and Management Council (NDRRMC) as a basis and called on the involvement of more agencies.

The coordination meeting was also held as part of the validation of activities under the “MindaNOW! Nurturing Our Waters” program of MinDA, a river-basin and watershed manage-ment program that also seeks to institutionalize the LGUs capacity build-ing and strengthen their planning capabilities on environmental sustain-ability.

Among the agencies involved include OCD, Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Environment and Natu-ral Resources (DENR), Department of Agricul-ture (DA), Department of Science and Technol-ogy (DOST) and Phil-ippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astro-nomical Services Ad-ministration (PAGASA). (DED/PIA12/MinDA)


Anti Trafficking Task Force extends help for reintegration of trafficked personsby Olive Sudaria

KORONADAL CITY – The Regional Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Trafficking (RIACAT) in Region 12 extended a total of P298,000 assistance to trafficked in persons (TIPs) in 2011 through the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Region 12.

DSWD 12 Social Technology Unit head Amina Dataya said aside from the psychosocial services extended to all the 109 TIP victims-survi-vors, P200,000 out of the P298,000 aid was given to 20 recipients for liveli-hood/employment assis-tance; P90,000 to 12 re-cipients for skills training assistance and P24,000 or P8,000 financial aid

to each of the three vic-tims.

In addition to the RIACAT’s efforts, Data-ya continued, the local government units have their own anti-human trafficking initiatives like Tacurong City which res-cued eight TIPs and Gen-eral Santos City which saved 30 TIPs.

Dataya said RIACAT conducted various activi-

ties to strengthen its an-ti-human trafficking drive such as advocacy cam-paigns, training on psy-chosocial recovery, case managements, adopting the national referral sys-tem for the recovery and reintegration of trafficked persons, management of information system, shel-ter for trafficked persons and the establishment of helpline.

Thousands of Cotabato children benefit from “Handog Tsinelas”by Pops Gumana-Fruylan

GENERAL SANTOS CITY -– Thousands of children from the different munici-palities of Cotabato province received pairs of slippers from the “Handog Tsinelas” program of Governor Emmylou “Lala” J. Taliño-Mendoza.


On Wednesday, more than two thousand elementary pupils in Po-blacion, Carmen accept-ed their late Christmas presents through brand new pairs of colorful slip-pers.

“Handog Tsinelas” has given away a total of 2,191 pairs of slip-pers to 798 pupils from Northwest Elementary School (NES) and 1,393 pupils from Carmen Cen-tral Elementary School (CCES), according to a report from the provin-cial government of Cota-bato.

The program is a late Christmas gift-giving from the provincial government with a purpose of not only handing out foot wears to chil-dren, but to cheer and give joy to the residents as well.

In the munic-ipality of Antipas, 261 slippers were given away to chil-dren of Barangay Canaan while 258 senior citizens and other barangay residents were given goods such as rice and medicines.

Late last month, the governor personally handed presents to more

than 500 children in Ba-rangay Sibsib in Tulunan Municipality. Each child was able to bring home a gift pack and a pair of slippers as a Christmas gift.

In barangay New Panay, Pigcawayan, more than 300 kids also received wrapped gifts and slippers from the provincial government; while bags of rice, va-riety of medicines, caps and calendars were also given to adult residents including senior citi-zens.

Meanwhile, the governor also led the distribution of gifts and

handed rice, medicines, slippers, calendars and hats to children and adults in Libo-o, Mlang

More than 300 chil-dren ages 3-12 years old, and an estimated

75% of residents who were in attendance were entertained by the excit-ing activities lined-up by the provincial govern-ment.

“This is just part of our commitment in pur-suing a sound program for children where every child is treated equal,” the Local Government of Cotabato province quot-ed the governor as say-ing

Thousands more slippers, donated by the provincial government and partners from the private sector, are ex-pected to be given away to children in the next

visit of the governor to other barangays in the province. (PGFruylan/PIA-Gensan with re-ports from LGU Cota-bato province)


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OWWA-Caraga offers reintegration program to OFWs

The Regional Office of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) in Caraga Region continuous to offer reintegration program to Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in the region.

by Robert E. Roperos


In a radio interview this morning, Ms. Annette Lovete of OWWA-Caraga pointed out that OFWs who are members of OWWA can avail of a loan assistance to be used for investing business. Lovete added the livelihood loan program is open for both active OFWs and those who were former OFWs but has been active members of OWWA. She said if they have at least one mem-bership with OWWA, they can already avail of the program. The program allows the qualified OFW appli-cants to a minimum of P300,000 an maximum of P2 million. “Thus, with this amount, they (OFW) can really start their busi-ness or livelihood,” Lovete said. The official further said the interest rate is only 7.5 percent per annum.

“This is lower compared to other finance institutions offering same program,” Lovete added. Lovete stressed ap-plicants should undergo Enterprise Development Training (EDT) and after the training, OWWA en-dorsed the applicants to its partner state banks: Land Bank of the Philip-pines (LBP) and Devel-opment bank of the Phil-ippines (DBP) to ensure that the money borrowed will be used as what it is intended. “The three-day EDT gives inputs to the appli-cants on values reintegra-tion, financial literacy and how to handle business before the application will be granted,” she said. Lovete also said OWWA will conduct con-stant monitoring of the business activities un-dertaken by the grantees to know whether or not the livelihood has helped them improved their lives, and to ensure that they can pay the money they borrowed plus the interest through their improved in-come. The OWWA official explained further that the approving bank will really

have to scrutinize the se-lection process to ensure that the grantee will suc-ceed in whatever business or livelihood they will es-tablish. She said one of the requirements of the appli-cants is to submit a proj-ect proposal. With this proposal, the OWWA and the approving banks will conduct meticulous pro-cess before they will ap-prove the application. With this, Lovete said there is no reason why the grantees cannot pay the money they bor-rowed as well as the inter-est because the approving authorities should see to it that the project proposal submitted will be feasible, aside from assuring that the applicant is ready and has the capacity to pay his financial obligations. To date, the official said since the program is being newly-introduced here, OFWs in the region are just starting to avail of the program. She said as per information from LBP, an application from an OFW of this city has just approved and will be granted some P2 million for the establishment of sand and gravel business.



BUTUAN CITY – Online application will soon be available for those who are already in the police service (promotional) and for those aspiring to enter the Philippine National Police (PNP) entrance examinations.

National Police Com-mission (NAPOLCOM) re-gional director Atty. Reme-neo Valenzuela said their agency has adopted and will implement changes in the procedures of the entrance examinations application this year. According to Valenzuela,

their agency will no longer is-sue application forms to inter-ested individuals instead they are directed to visit their web-site at www.napolcom.gov.ph and fill-up the application form online. The applicants will then receive a letter reply and said document will then be

presented to the NAPOLCOM office personally for proper verification and evaluation. Once said documents are verified and evaluated and applicants are found qualified, the commission will then approve their appli-cation. Online scheduling will

by Nora CL Molde


be available on February 1 up to 13 and the examina-tion schedule will be on the month of April, this year. Meanwhile, PNP Car-aga regional office is now open for attrition quota for

Police Officer I (PO1) for CY 2012 in addition to their reg-ular recruitment program for this year. All interested appli-cants may call at (085) 815-3325; 815-1668; 342-4570

or visit their Public Informa-tion Office and/or look for SPO3 Nilo Dela Calzada of the Regional Personnel and Human Resource Develop-ment Division (R1) for more details.


BUTUAN CITY – “Monitoring is vital for the sustainability of a project.”

by Aurell P. Arais

Mayor Leo Navarro of Marihatag, Surigao del Sur said this during the Community Based Monitoring and Evalu-ation Group Training of the Department of Agri-culture -Mindanao Rural Development Program (DA-MRDP) held recent-ly in the said town. He said that in the past, numerous proj-

ects from the govern-ment, after it has been transferred to the recip-ients just die down due to different contributing factors. “Daghan mga proyekto nga dili mula-hutay, lain-lain ang mga rason pero kung atong iksamenon ug maayo, kulang sa monitoring ang nag-unang rason

(Various projects will not sustain due to dif-ferent reasons but if we look at it closer, lack of monitoring is the very first reason),” he said. Navarro lauded MRDP in coming up with a scheme that gives monitoring and evalua-tion a priority. To ensure sus-tainability, the Natural


Resource Management; Monitoring and Evalua-tion and Info-Ace com-ponents of MRDP from Program Support Office in Davao City and Re-gional Program Coor-dinating Office (RPCO) based in the Regional Office of the Department of Agriculture in Butuan City jointly conducted the CBMEG training. Participants of the training were the chair-men and members of different peoples’ orga-nizations and their re-spective barangay of-ficials and counterparts

from Marihatag LGU. CBMEG is a body to be created through a barangay ordinance and has been tasked to monitor and evaluate MRDP projects within its community and submit monitoring and evalua-tion reports to the mu-nicipal level for proper action if deemed neces-sary in case of eventu-alities on the projects. Marihatag is a re-cipient of Global Equity Fund (GEF) with partic-ular subprojects called On the Ground Invest-ments (OGI) such as

river bank stabilization, agroforestry and its livelihood component called Sustainable In-come Generating Activi-ties (SIGA). It is also a recipient of Community Fund for Agricultural Development (CFAD) and Rural Infrastructure (RI). RPCO focal per-son Eliseo Tila revealed that Marihatag is one of most active MRDP-LGUs enrolled in terms of project implementation performance. (RAFID DA-Caraga)


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DOLE-IX earmarks P19M SPES fund for 2012by Franklin P. Gumapon

DIPOLOG CITY - Regional Director Ponciano M. Ligutom of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)-IX disclosed this week that P19,088,000 has been earmarked for Special Program for Employment of Students (SPES) for calendar year 2012.


Mayor Leonardo Ba-basa, Jr. gave his welcome message to some 73 par-ticipants composed of the council’s regular members, local government employ-ees and some invited lo-cal residents. Also present are Col. Gerardo Barrien-tos, Brigade Commander, 53rd IB, Philippine Army and Lt.Col. Nasser Penda-tun, Battalion Command-er 53rd IB,PA and men.

Bayog peace and order council convenes, tackles IPSPby Bernadine A. Gabawan

BAYOG, Zamboanga del Sur – As the new year starts and to give emphasis on its peace and order situation, Municipal Peace and Order Council (MPOC) of Bayog, this province convened on Wednesday, January 11 at Glupa Gulian Agro-Tourism Park, Sitio Quibranza, Barangay Kahayagan, this municipality.

This fund will be used to pay the 40 percent subsidy for the wages of students who are hired by es-tablishments, local government units (LGUs) and other agencies that serve as DOLE’s partners in the implementation of said program. The fund alloca-tion for each DOLE field office is as fol-

lows: Isabela City – P572,640; Zamboan-ga City – P3,244,960; Zamboanga del Norte – P5,344,640; Zamboanga del Sur – 5,344,640; and Zamboanga Sibugay – P4,681,120. SPES provides employment oppor-tunities to poor stu-dents to enable them to raise money to sup-port their studies.

Under this pro-gram 60 percent of the student’s salary shall be paid by his employer and the re-maining 40 percent will be subsidized by DOLE. Each student is entitled to work for a minimum of 30 days and a maximum of 52 days. (JPA/FPG/PIA-Zamboanga del Norte)


Using a power point presentation, Lt.Col Pendatun pre-sented the Armed Forc-es of the Philippines Internal Peace and Se-curity Plan (IPSP) code name “Bayanihan.” After his presen-tation, he urged the participants to work hand in hand to attain real peace in the local-

ity and in our country as well. During the meet-ing, the most significant concern brought out to the council members is the reported citings of New People’s Army (NPA) in some baran-gays of the municipali-ty. The barangay chair-men concern expressed fears of infiltration by

these elements in their respective areas.The army official as-sured the barangay chairmen that they will check and verify their complaint and act on it as soon as possible, infact after the meet-ing army personnel im-mediately visited the affected areas. (NBE/BAG/CAL/PIA9)

Muslim village receives P5-M projectsby Jocelyn P. Alvarez

ZAMBOANGA CITY - Coastal and Muslim inhabited village Taluksangay of the city’s east coast received this week various infrastructure projects totaling to P5.7 million.

City Information Officer Sheila Covarrubias said Taluksangay barangay council along with edu-cation officials formally received the 2-storey 6 classroom building con-structed at the Taluksan-gay Elementary School and the day care center and fence facility at the Taluksangay baramgay hall during an inaugura-tion ceremony held over

the weekdays. Mayor Celso Lobregat lead the unveil-ing of the said projects. “The projects that were inaugurated form part of Mayor Lobregat’s strong resolve to accel-erate the delivery of ser-vices in the barangays by infusing funds for vari-ous infrastructure proj-ects,” Covarrubias said. Taluksangay baran-gay chairman and Coun-

cilor Abdurahman Nuño said the infrastructure projects will sure benefit not only the people in the area but its neighboring barangays as well. Nuño also cited the architectural design of both the school building and the day care center as sensitive enough to show its intent of pre-serving the Muslim cul-ture of the barangay.(JPA / PIA ZBST)

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Families affected by Sendong to be given housing assistanceby Jumalyn J. Picato

Some 29,536 families who were displaced/affected by tropical storm ‘Sendong’ in the cities of Iligan and Cagayan de Oro will benefit from the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating

Council - National Housing Authority (HUDCC-NHA) permanent housing assistance.

Froilan R. Kampitan, assistant general manager, HUDCC-NHA, revealed this during the National

Shelter Cluster Summit held in Grand Caprice, Limketkai Center, recently. Vice President Jejomar Binay


said not only families whose houses that have been totally damaged will be relocated but also residents residing in danger zone areas. Through the use of market segmentation, the HUDCC-NHA, in collaboration with the DSWD, will finalize the segmentation of beneficiaries, where a total number of formal and informal sectors will be identified if they are currently living in dangerous or non-dangerous areas. Victims that will be included in the list of informal sectors are those temporarily residing in evacuation centers (ECs) where the DSWD has data and those living outside the ECs but still are affected by Sendong. On the other hand, formal sectors will be recognized by HUDCC-NHA with the help of the

Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF) and the Social Security System, Secretary Dinky Soliman of DSWD said. Soliman added that the DSWD will also be putting up grievance (Reklamo) desk in all evacuation centers which will be made up of multi-sectoral groups, non-government organizations (NGOs), peoples organizations (POs), and assisted by the local government unit.

The permanent housing project of sustainable communities comprises of health center, school building, police outpost, wet market, multi-purpose covered court, and material recovery facilities. Meanwhile, in an assessment report gathered by Secretary Robredo, DILG has identified some six non-livable areas in Cagayan de Oro City and another 16 in Iligan City.


Lanao del Norte lass bags Sinulog Queen 4th Runner-up crownby Vincent N. Labial

TUBOD, Lanao del Norte – Reigning Ms. Lanao del Norte Angel Lou Pates was declared 4th Runner-up in the recently concluded Search for Sinulog Festival Queen

The well-attended competition was held at the Abellana National School in Cebu City yesterday, January 13. The 20-year old lead dancer from the capital town of Tubod impressed the judges with her graceful dance moves and poise under pressure despite being a first-timer in the festival pageant. The Lanao del Norte candidate performed flawlessly with dancers from the Land of Beauty and Bounty during a three-minute Sinulog dance routine. The Festival Queen candidates were also required to do a one-minute solo performance during the competition donning on her festival costume. “I was really overwhelmed with the kind of support that I got from the other members of the contingent and from the officials of our province especially Gov. Khalid Dimaporo. I will never forget this experience”, Pates expressed. The search of Festival Queen 2012 is one of the highlights of the annual

celebration of Cebu’s Sinulog Festival. A pre-pageant activity happened earlier at SM City North Wing which included a fashion show of the 14 contestants from the Visayas and Mindanao in their ornate festival costumes. The Lanao del Norte representative is a student of MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology taking up B.S. Biology. Other winners were Apriel Smith crowned as this year’s Festival Queen, Nerissa Modesto (1st runner- up) of Tanauan, Leyte; Conchitina CleofeYu (2nd runner-up) of Alang-alang, Leyte; and Shekina Rose Lasola (3rdrunner-up) of Dumaguete City. (PIO-LDN)


NPA leader, two other rebels surrenderby Ruby Leonora R. Balistoy

MALAYBALAY CITY, Bukidnon - Three more New People’s Army (NPA) rebels surrendered to the government on January 6 at around 10:30 a.m., thru the army’s 8th Infantry Battalion (8th IB) under Lt. Col. Jose Maria Cuerpo II, Commanding Officer, based in Maramag, Bukidnon.

Lt. Jeorge Jallorina, 8th IB Spokesperson, said the three who belong to the ‘Sangay sa Partido Pampropaganda 3, Guerilla Front 6 (SPP3, GF6) operating in San Fernando, Bukidnon, were Nelio Padao alias ‘Raymond,’ Judy Padao alias ‘Renan’, and Tenoy Sabuan a.k.a ‘Basag’. Two of them have reportedly served the organization for several years, while Judy Padao served for three months only. In a press statement, Nelio Padao, 27, identified as Squad Leader under Ernesto ‘Boyboy’ Roa Command of the Communist Party of the Philippines/New People’s Army/National Democratic Front-GF6 (CPP/NPA/NDF-GF6), said they decided to lay down their arms and go back to the mainstream of society because of the hardships they experienced in the mountains and disappointments with the cause. They brought with them three high-powered firearms and ammunition. Hon. Florencio Flores, Jr., Bukidnon 2nd District Representative and Governor Alex Calingasan, meanwhile, held a brief welcome ceremony at the provincial governor’s office. It can be recalled that on November 15, 2011, eighty (80) Communist Terrorists (CTs) and Militia ng Bayan (MBs), led by

Bejamin Salusad alias “Nonong”, also surrendered to 8th Infantry Battalion bringing along with them 25 assorted high-powered firearms. The governor also expressed hope that with this development, the rebel returnees could help identify other NPA members or even convince the same to surrender, too. The rebel returnees will receive financial and livelihood assistance from the province through its local integration program, while other benefits and privileges will still be determined by the Joint Validation and Authentication Committee (JVAC). Col. Romeo Gapuz, the Army’s 403rd Brigade Commander, here, welcomed the three NPA rebels who recently surrendered, citing that sociopolitical disparities can be achieved through peaceful means.

one mindanao - january 16, 2012

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